What Is the Support at Home Program? A Simple Guide for Melbourne Families

If you're feeling confused about Support at Home, you're not alone

If you've been researching home care for a parent or loved one, you've probably come across two different terms — "Home Care Packages" and "Support at Home." It's confusing, and we hear it from families every week. Here's the simple version: the Australian Government replaced Home Care Packages with a new program called Support at Home in November 2025. If you're just starting your research now, Support at Home is the program that applies to you.

The name change alone has caused plenty of frustration. But the good news is that Support at Home was designed to fix many of the problems families experienced under the old system — long wait times, confusing fees, and providers who charged too much for too little. Understanding how it works puts you in a much stronger position to get the right care for your loved one.

How Support at Home works — the basics

Support at Home provides government-funded home care to older Australians who have been assessed as needing support to continue living at home. The program covers a wide range of services, from help with everyday tasks like cleaning and cooking through to nursing care, physiotherapy, and dementia support.

The biggest change from the old system is how funding is structured. Instead of four package levels, Support at Home uses eight classifications. After your assessment, you'll be assigned a classification based on your care needs — Classification 1 provides around $10,731 per year for minimal support, while Classification 8 provides approximately $78,106 per year for intensive care needs including palliative care.

Your funding is now allocated in quarterly budgets rather than an annual lump sum. This is actually a positive change — under the old system, $4.2 billion sat unspent in home care accounts because families didn't realise what they could use it for. Quarterly budgets make it easier to plan your spending and ensure your loved one is actually receiving the care they're entitled to.

What services does Support at Home cover?

The program divides services into three categories, and this matters because it affects how much you'll pay out of pocket.

Clinical care includes nursing, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, podiatry, and other allied health services. Under Support at Home, clinical care is fully funded by the government — meaning there's no contribution required from you or your loved one. This is a significant improvement on the old system.

If your parent needs help with nursing or health support at home, this is particularly good news. Services like wound care, medication management, and chronic disease support are covered without any client contribution.

Independence supports cover things like assistive technology, home modifications (grab rails, ramps, bathroom modifications), and allied health services aimed at maintaining independence. For these, you may need to contribute around 50 per cent of the cost, depending on your financial situation.

Everyday living supports include personal care (help with showering, dressing, grooming), domestic assistance (cleaning, laundry, meal preparation), and social and community support (transport, companionship, outings). The contribution for these services can be higher — up to 80 per cent for higher-income individuals — but most people pay significantly less.

How do you get assessed for Support at Home?

The process starts with My Aged Care, the government's gateway to all aged care services. You can contact them by phone on 1800 200 422 or register online at myagedcare.gov.au. A screening assessment will determine whether your loved one is eligible for a comprehensive assessment.

The comprehensive assessment is conducted in your loved one's home and typically takes one to three hours. The assessor will look at your parent's physical, cognitive, and emotional needs, their living situation, and any support they're already receiving. Based on this, they'll be assigned one of the eight Support at Home classifications.

The average time from application to assessment is around 22 days, though it can be longer. Once assessed and classified, your loved one will receive their funding — though there may be a wait depending on demand. If the wait exceeds expected timeframes, interim funding at 60 per cent may be provided.

What about price caps and fees?

One of the most welcome changes under Support at Home is greater fee transparency. Administration fees, which some providers previously charged on top of management fees, are now prohibited. Care management fees are capped at 10 per cent of your funding. And from 1 July 2026, price caps will take effect across the board, ensuring no provider can charge above government-set rates for specific services.

There are also no exit fees under Support at Home, meaning you're free to switch providers at any time without financial penalty. This is a big deal — under the old system, some providers made it costly and complicated to leave.

At J.PEER Health, we publish our fees openly because we believe you deserve to know exactly what you'll pay before you commit. You can visit our pricing page to see our fee structure in full.

What if your loved one needs care right now?

The assessment and funding process can take weeks or months. If your parent needs care urgently — after a hospital stay, a fall, or a sudden decline — waiting isn't always an option.

Private home care is available immediately, with no government assessment required and no lock-in contracts. Many families start with private care while waiting for their Support at Home funding to come through, then transition to funded services once approved. Your provider can help manage this transition seamlessly.

If your loved one is being discharged from hospital and needs support at home, our post-hospital care service can often start within days.

Choosing a provider — what to look for

Once your loved one has been assessed and classified, you'll have 56 days (with a possible 28-day extension) to choose a provider. My Aged Care lets you shortlist up to 16 providers and compare up to three side by side.

When comparing providers, pay attention to their fee transparency, the languages spoken by their care team, whether they offer carer consistency (the same person visiting each time), and how they handle cultural and dietary preferences. These things make an enormous difference to your loved one's daily experience.

For families in Melbourne's south-east, J.PEER Health serves Dandenong, Berwick, Cranbourne, Clyde, Noble Park, Carrum Downs, Narre Warren, Hallam, Endeavour Hills, Pakenham, and surrounding suburbs. Our care team speaks Hindi, Punjabi, Urdu, Tamil, Malay, and English.

You don't have to figure this out alone

Navigating the aged care system can feel overwhelming, especially when you're worried about a parent. That's exactly why we're here. If you have questions about Support at Home, need help understanding your loved one's classification, or just want to talk through your options, we're happy to help — no obligation, no pressure.

Call us on 0469 371 121 for a friendly chat, or email Care@Jpeerhealth.com. We're available 24/7.