Nan has her arm in a sling.

When walking home last week we observed a lady with her arm in a sling.

 Our take on that it was a fall of some sort & when you are in your eighties[ our guess] then there is every change that it could be a break. This then sets up a common process of more breaks, falls & hence needing more care & attention. From our observations over the last 10 years there is no husband for this lady. 

Maybe there is family but they always have their own challenges.

Nan & her family, like our parents, would usually prefer to remain in their own home. 

Hence there are Home Care Packages which include

• ·         Personal care such as showering, mobility & meals
• ·         Support services  such as washing, house cleaning, basic home maintenance & transport for doctors or social activities
• ·         Clinical care such as nursing & other health services

What are the Home care costs?

1.      All pay a basic care fee which is set @ 17.5% of the basic single aged pension.   This today for Nan would be 133.96 p.f. & would increase every 6 months with the CPI & the pension.
2.     Then there is an income tested fee which is 50% of income above a threshold but is subject to a lifetime aged care cap  of 60,000.

This fee means that if Nan is on the full pension only she does not pay any more.

If Nan has a single income between 24,835.20 and  47,985.60 then Nan would pay  the lower of

•    The cost of the package or Basic Subsidy amount.
•   50% of  [assessable income -47,985.60] + 5,000
•   10,000

This means that part pensioners & self funded retirees with income less than the upper limit have income tested fee capped at 5,000 which is 13.74 p.d.  [ 5,000/ 364].

Self funded retirees above the limit have fees capped at 10,000p.a or 27.47p.d.

If Pop is around then the threshold for couples is 19,172.40 each.

As you can imagine government known as Department of Human Services needs to know & assess Nan quarterly. She needs that stress. Not.

Nan then might need to take the next step in the process which is into Residential Care.

 That step from our observations happens when either Nan is physically too weak to care for herself & becomes too hard or when those mental marbles fail to register. We have our very good friend in that situation & he was only in early 70’s when he moved into Low care. You just never know.

The costs & terms for Residential Care  are worth another thought bubble next time.

It might be called ‘the 80 / 40 rule’.

 I.e. when your parents are eighty & you are in your forties then a family conference discussing if & when & how & where  would reduce the stress all round.

Preparation prevents poor results.

Nan & her family will have her assets & income assessed which then determine Nan’s ongoing fees. Hence optimising assets & income to maximise pension & minimise ongoing fees reminds us of teaching Grade 11 & 12 calculus.

Remember money in the bank, perhaps from selling the house, is taxed & deemed & may reduce the pension available.

If we were to sit down in three years time & looked back what do we need to do today so that you are financially & personally better off & happier.

Our role is to maximise the probability of you achieving your financial objectives

John McAuliffe