The Albanese government’s first interim budget has been touted as the budget the country needs to have. So, what’s in the October Budget for older Australians? There are quite a few measures that should make them smile.
There are big ticket measures for fixing the aged care sector. These include higher pay for aged care staff, free TAFE courses and training for future aged care staff. There’s also hundreds of millions to be spent on upgrades to improve home care systems. A raft of measures will also increase support and improve quality of care for aged care residents.
“This Budget builds on the recommendations of the aged care royal commission and implements the government’s federal election commitments to further reform aged care,” says Council on the Ageing CEO Ian Yates.
Subject to legislation, further measures could relieve cost of living pressures for older Australians.
More retirees eligible for the Commonwealth Seniors Health Card
Older Australians will benefit from raised income limits for the Commonwealth Seniors Health Card (CSHC). The higher thresholds will give more than 50,000 additional self-funded retirees access to the card.
The income limits will increase from:
- $61,284 to $90,000 for singles
- $98,054 to $144,000 for couples (combined).
More than 44,000 older Australians will benefit in the first year of implementation. So, too, will around 52,000 card holders by 2026-27.
The CSHC gives older Aussies access to cheaper medicines under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS). They’ll also get bulk billed doctor visits, and the concessional thresholds of the PBS and Extended Medicare safety nets.
More incentive to downsize
Pensioners who wish to downsize will benefit from additional measures when downsizing the family home.
From 1 January 2023, the assets test exemption for principal home sale proceeds will be extended from up to 12 months to up to 24 months. This allows more time to complete the sale and buy a new principal home without the proceeds affecting their pension payment rates through the assets test.
Only the lower deeming rate (0.25 per cent) will be used to calculate income earned from principal home sale proceeds while they are asset test exempt.
Deeming freeze for pensioners
Social security deeming rates will be frozen at their current levels for the next two years. The lower deeming rate will remain frozen at 0.25 per cent. The upper rate will remain at 2.25 per cent for the next two years, to 30 June 2024.
The lower deeming rate has been applied since 1 July 2022 on financial investments up to the threshold amount of $56,400 for singles and $93,600 for couples.
Age pensioners can work more without penalty
From 1 December 2022, eligible pensioners will have their Work Bonus Income Bank credited with $4000 until 30 June 2023. The Work Bonus Income Bank will increase from $7800 to $11,800 until 30 June 2023.
This means pensioners can earn an extra $4000 on top of their pension income-free area each year before their pension begins to reduce.
Many of these measures have been ‘leaked’ in the weeks leading up to the October Budget. All are subject to the passage of legislation.
“As in other important policy areas such as health, housing and employment, this Budget puts financial flesh on the bones of the government’s election commitments,” says Mr Yates.
“[It] has kept the promises to reduce the PBS co-payment and revamp the primary health system. These initiatives will both improve the health of older people and help with the cost of living.”
October Budget ‘falls short on fairness’
The October Budget fulfills some of the Albanese government’s election promises. However, it falls short on fairness, says Anglicare Australia executive director Kasy Chambers.
“There are welcome steps towards a stronger public sector, accountability in government, and the first moves to a wellbeing budget,” she says.
“The government is also making a start on the cost-of-living crisis. Charities and community groups are seeing more and more people come to us for help. But our funding isn’t keeping up.
Ms Chambers, like many others, rues the “lost opportunity to deal with stage 3 tax cuts”.
“The most disappointing part of tonight’s Budget are the stage 3 tax cuts. The tax cuts are expensive, unfair and unpopular. Even those set to benefit say they don’t need them,” says Ms Chambers.
“These tax cuts will damage our progressive tax system and lock in unfairness. Our costings show that if the government scrapped the tax cuts, it could lift 2.4 million people out of poverty and boost affordable housing – with savings to spare.
“If the government is serious about wellbeing, it should be lifting people out of poverty – not handing money back to people who don’t want or need it.”
Are you happy with what’s in the October Budget for older Australians? Would you like to have seen more on tax cuts? Why not share your thoughts about the October Budget in the comments section below?
Ditch the Stage 3 tax cuts, Albo!
Instead of falling as promised, electricity prices will make heating unaffordable. Renewable energy is more reliable and cheaper, he said – try that on the people of Europe at the end of their current winter.
Still, it’s an ill wind that blows nobody any good, China will be happy to take up the industry – and jobs – we lose because they still have cheap, reliable electricity made, in part, with the coal they buy from Australia.
Most of Australia’s electricity is still generated by coal too but power costs are rising anyway.
Clearly the Government has a new crystal ball. They were not able to see increased energy rates when they promised the $275 energy price drop, but van now forecast the increases for the next two years.
Seems they now know something about the cost of electricity from hydro and coal that they didn’t know before!
Pretty poor if you ask me.
The tax cuts are unfair and unwanted. The only upside is our family who don’t want or need them have committed to spend them on us. As aged pensioners who had downsized and paid the price, we got nothing. Just a promise of higher energy, insurance, fuel and food costs. Thank goodness for a caring family.
The devil is in the detail in terms of residential Agedcare.
It seems that the existing means test is now being re done using a higher rate of daily rate.
Without being able to confirm this as 3 attempts to speak to Centrelink have failed after 30 minutes I have simply just hung up.
In my circumstances I am just beyond the pension limit in terms of assets but when they are deemed as income I am less than $25.000.00 a year income.
The new means test will result in me paying an additional $50.00 a day.
I just can’t afford that.
This is appalling.
John