Tasmanian retirement village residents form association after Southern Cross Care fee hikes

Tasmanian retirement village residents have banded together to form an association after the state’s largest aged care provider moved to hike their fees.

Rivulet Aged Care Home (Southern Cross Care) in Hobart. Picture: supplied

Tasmanian retirement village residents have banded together to form an association after the state’s largest aged care provider moved to hike their service and maintenance fees by up to 60 per cent.

Southern Cross Care (SCC) says it raised the fees after it experienced operating losses across its 13 villages last year.

An analysis undertaken by the provider found it was paying for increasing services such as moving furniture, gardening and installing irrigation systems.

Residents have pushed back strongly against the decision, arguing that the Retirement Villages Act leaves them “powerless” to “negotiate” and allows them no “ability to mitigate against such fee hikes”.

Tasmanian Association for Residents of Retirement Villages secretary John Archer said in addition to fee increases in line with the consumer price index (CPI), some villages had been hit with a “reported rise of over 60 per cent”.

“The best that residents at the Glenara Lakes village could negotiate for their 50 per cent increase was a phased-in approach, but this was in the face of SCC’s claim that they retain the right to impose similar increases in the future,” Mr Archer said.

Southern Cross Care CEO Robyn Boyd. Picture: Chris Kidd

“In almost every other area of commerce, the consumer has legislated protection. Sadly, this is not the case for retirement village residents.”

SCC held three consultation sessions at each of its villages last year to discuss the changes. At Glenara Lakes at Youngtown, the $14.54 service and maintenance fee will ultimately increase to $22 as at September 1 this year (plus CPI).

SCC CEO Robyn Boyd told the Mercury that the provider had found it was paying for services that were typically part of home care packages, which the residents weren’t “taking up” or “being assessed for eligibility”.

“Off the back of [residents’] feedback, we said, ‘OK, we understand that some people may experience financial hardship’,” she said. “And we don’t want to unhouse anyone. That’s not our mission.”

“And so we developed a financial hardship policy. And anyone who genuinely experiences financial hardship as a result of the increases, come and see us and we’ll come up with an individual plan for you.”

Elise Archer MP. Picture: Nikki Davis-Jones

Ms Boyd said it was “unlikely” the fees would be increased again and “we would do our very best for that not to occur”.

Bass Liberal MP Lara Alexander is lobbying Attorney-General Elise Archer to pursue tweaks to the legislation governing retirement villages, saying consultation requirements needed to be strengthened in the event “significant changes” were proposed to residents.

Ms Archer said she had asked the Justice Department to review the Retirement Villages Act and “provide advice on how these rights might be strengthened”.