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Balance Retirement & Aged Care Specialists

Planning For The Future With Your Loved One In Care

Posted on: June 12th, 2014 by Eric Hiam in Aged Care Planning

When looking at enrolling your loved one into Aged Care there is a few steps to go through to ensure you are giving your loved one the best start in their new community as well as ensuring you are financially set up for the future care of your loved one.

Researching into your options is paramount, this is we recommend consulting the advice of Aged Care Advice professionals like Balance Aged Care Specialists. Balance Aged Care Specialists will walk with your through the following steps.

1.Assess Your Options

Before your loved one goes into care you’ll need to arrange an Aged Care Assessment which will determine the level of care and type of facilities to consider.

This assessment is free and done through ACAT (Aged Care Assessment Team). It can be arranged through your GP. Once you know what level of Aged Care you are dealing with, Balance Aged Care Specialists can help you to find a facility and arrange the financials.

2. Research Facilities

The Aged Care Assessments Team’s (ACAT) report will steer you towards either low or high care. You should research and visit a number of facilities to choose the right one. We recommend finding one close to family members to make visiting easier.

3. Work Out The Financials

Daily care fees and the payment plans can be difficult to navigate and plan for. Working out the financials is important before enrolling your loved one into a facility. Balance Aged Care Specialists can help you to find the best financial plan for your family. Getting your financial plan right so you maximize all entitlements and minimize fees is worth the investment in a good financial planner.

4. Lodge Applications

Demand for aged care is high and only growing so make sure you apply to a few facilities in the area before they open and be prepared to wait a while for an opening.

We advise researching and finding a few different homes that you are happy with to help you find an opening faster.

5. Manage Ongoing Financial Issues and Obligations

Once a resident goes into care there are ongoing financial obligations: daily care fees, cash flow and keeping up to date with government and Centrelink changes.

Balance Aged Care Specialists can team with you to navigate these as they arise. For more information on our Aged Care advice or to organise a meeting with us contact us today.