Aged Care Act 2024

An access approval takes effect on the day specified in the notice of the decision under section 70 and remains in effect until the earlier of the following:

the individual’s eligibility determination for an aged care needs assessment, or the access approval, is revoked under section 73 or 74;

another decision is made for the individual under subsections 65(1) and (2).

An access approval means an approval under subsection 65(2), see the definition of access approval in section 7.

For the purposes of subsection (1), the day specified in the notice of decision under section 70 for an individual may be a day that is earlier than the day the access approval is given if:

the individual makes an application, in the approved form, within the period referred to in subsection (3); and

the System Governor is satisfied that any of the circumstances set out in subsection (4) apply in relation to the individual; and

the day is no earlier than the first day a funded aged care service was delivered to the individual.

The period is:

the period of 5 days after the first day an aged care service covered by the approval was delivered to the individual; or

if circumstances prescribed by the rules apply—the period prescribed by the rules; or

if the System Governor determines a period for the individual under subsection (6)—that period.

The circumstances are:

the individual urgently needed access to funded aged care services and there was a significant risk of harm to the individual if those services were not delivered to the individual before the approval was given; or

the individual is an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person and at the time the individual was seeking to access funded aged care services there was a lack of availability of an approved needs assessor to undertake a culturally safe aged care needs assessment for the individual; or

the individual commenced accessing funded aged care services under a specialist aged care program before the approval was given and at the time the individual was seeking to access funded aged care services there was a significant delay in the availability of an approved needs assessor to undertake an aged care needs assessment for the individual.

For the purposes of paragraph (3)(c), an individual may apply, in the approved form, to the System Governor to determine a longer period than what would otherwise apply in relation to the individual under paragraph (3)(a) or (b).

The System Governor must, by written notice given to the person decide to:

determine the longer period for the individual; or

reject the application.

The notice under subsection (6) must:

be given as soon as practicable after the decision is made; and

include the reasons for the decision and how a person may apply for reconsideration of the decision.