Amber Crosthwaite

OPINION: Reactive rhetoric is no way to have a sensible discussion about NDIS reform.

Overly punitive penalties in the Aged Care Act risk alienating the workforce and stalling development of leaders and career paths.

Amid record levels of job creation and economic participation in WA, unemployment is static for those with a disability.

Legislation can only be effective if it is backed up by action on the ground, and the aged care sector is struggling to deliver.

The new Aged Care Act is a welcome departure from its predecessor but lacks detail.

Governments are under no obligation to accept advice from the sector about costs and funding strategies.

The final report from the Disability Royal Commission is somewhat underwhelming.

The voice referendum is an historic opportunity to help Indigenous people, young and old.

The aim is to ensure the continued relevance and sustainability of the disability scheme.

The effectiveness of public advocate bodies, including the way in which they are funded, needs to be reviewed.

It seems clear not all that glitters is gold when it comes to how the Fair Work Commission’s recent 15 per cent pay rise for aged care workers will be funded.

User pays may be the only way the aged care system can be put on a sustainable footing.

Despite significant progress, the disability services sector still faces tensions between desired outcomes and the costs of achieving them.

Despite ministerial optimism, many operators will struggle to adhere to impending care provision changes.

The treasurer might be onto something with his belief in values-based capitalism.

This state has been slow to adopt an initiative for the supply of new disability accommodation stock.

As the boomers move to the next stage of their lives, the issue of who pays for residential care is back in the spotlight.

Teething problems aside, a new federal rating system is a positive move.

An unintended consequence of the scheme is that it makes a raft of public expenditure more visible.

Providers need to think outside the box to secure and retain staff.

Case studies into disability service providers by the Disability Royal Commission make for sobering reading.

How is government going to support providers in the pathway to good governance and who is going to pay for it?

The NDIS-funded Specialist Disability Accommodation program needs some reworking to best serve the sector.

The absence from the Jobs and Skills Summit of the association representing aged care sector employers was a missed opportunity.

Finding solutions to the issue of unregistered NDIS providers is not black and white.

There are many moving parts that need tweaking to make the NDIS function at its best.

The state government has turned its back on the retirement village sector and with it has neutered WA’s response to the rapid ageing of its population.

The state government must ensure certainty for the retirement villages sector.

Familial relationships are set to be challenged as our population ages, care costs rise and who pays is questioned.

Amber Crosthwaite’s latest column for Business News takes the form of an open letter to Labor’s new aged care minister Mark Butler and Anika Wells.

Columnist Amber Crosthwaite has penned an open letter to the new minister responsible for the National Disability Insurance Scheme, Bill Shorten.

The restoration of trust between the community and aged care sector is a vital first step if much-needed reform is to be achieved.