Aged care financial hardship assistance - assessment 065-05030010

Choose your assessment:

• For reviews of previous completed hardship assessments or change in circumstances, see Aged care financial hardship assistance – review/cease/revoke
• If a pre entry hardship assessment was completed and care recipient has now entered care, see Table 2
• For a new hardship assessment, go to Step 2

To confirm current home care details, go to care recipient record in ACMPS and review:

• Current ACAT: Assessment & Events tab > Assessment Details
• Current MTA: Means Testing Data tab > Means Tested Assessments

To confirm current residential/respite care details, go to care recipient record in Aged Care Staff Portal (ACSP) and review:

• Care recipient > Event Summary
• Means Testing > Resident Contribution type
• Fees and charges > Fees and charges details

Complete any income and/or asset updates based on information provided in the hardship form:

• Complete updates to income and assets from relevant dates refer to Aged care reviews – reassessments and updates
• Check if a Complex Assessment Officer (CAO) referral is required:
• If a CAO assessment has been completed within the last 12 months, a new referral may not be required
• Review the CAO Assessment Doc to make sure the most recent information is applied to the previous CAO Assessment
• Complete a Complex Assessment Officer (CAO) referral (if needed)
• If immediate processing of CAO referral is required, see Immediate new claim and non-new claim priority processing for escalation process
• Hardship will be calculated based on adjusted ongoing fees
• Complete an Ad-hoc review if required, see Aged care reviews - ad hoc reviews

A care recipient is ineligible for a hardship assessment when they meet 1 of the below:

• Own assets valued at more than the current hardship threshold (excluding any assets that cannot be sold or borrowed against)
• Gifted more than $10,000 in the previous 12 months and/or $30,000 in the previous 5 years
• Started a home care package before 1 July 2014 (and not opted into the post 1 July 2014 scheme)
• Have not provided income and/or assets in a means assessment. See Aged Care means assessment for details on when a verbal assessment can be completed
• Is currently receiving residential care under a pre 1 July 2014 assessment scheme and they occupy an extra services place
• In the Aged Care Staff Portal (ACSP), go to Care recipient > Event summary to see when extra service is coded

Does the care recipient meet any of the above criteria?

• Yes, care recipient is ineligible for hardship, see Table 2, Step 13
• No, go to Step 3

Confirm if further information is needed before completing the hardship assessment:

• home care only - Aged Care Assessment Teams (ACAT) approval needed
• update to income and assets needed

Check the hardship form is complete and all supporting documents lodged:

• See Resources for information on evidence needed for essential expenses and assets that cannot be sold or borrowed against
• Evidence is not required if there is monthly expense threshold and the amount claimed is below this amount

In Customer First Document Tools, check for any previous RFIs scanned and uploaded as a PDF:

• consider using the staff feedback tool if a previous RFI sent did not request all information needed

Is more information and/or supporting documents needed to assess the hardship claim?

• Yes, and information and/or supporting documents:
• not requested before, go to Step 4
• already requested, go to Step 5
• No, and all information and/or supporting documents given and questions on the hardship form are completed, see Table 2

Phone the care recipient, nominee, executor, or Power of Attorney to clarify the outstanding documents required. Proof of identity (POI) requirements are the same for both inbound and outbound phone calls, see Calling a customer or returning a customer's call.

Send an RFI letter through Process Direct to request information needed to assess the hardship claim, see Aged care letters - creating manual letters

Any documents requested for a deceased care recipient are to be sent to the executor or guardian of the estate including:

• any information required to complete a means assessment
• any supporting documentation required to calculate hardship

In Customer First:

• record all documents requested in a Fast Note
• hold the hardship assessment for 28 days and allow extra time for mail delivery
• copy the DOC from Customer First

In the ACSP:

• create care recipient note in ACSP. see Aged Care Staff Portal (ACSP) – Care Recipient in Context (CRiC) for details
• procedure ends here

Consider the information that has been requested:

• if evidence of an expense has not been provided:
• see the Resources page for a List of allowable essential expenses
• use monthly amount for expense if threshold applies, or
• remove the expense from the calculation
• add notes in calculator to explain decision
• if evidence to verify an asset is unrealisable has not been provided, the asset is included in assessment, therefore the hardship application will be rejected

A hardship application may be withdrawn when:

• an RFI has been issued to request further information, and
• there is not enough information to complete a calculation of potential hardship entitlement

Confirm that 28 days (plus an allowance for mail delivery) has passed since the hardship request for information (RFI) was sent.

Note: if the application can be completed with enough information provided, without the RFI response, then the application should be assessed.

Does the hardship assessment application meet the criteria to be withdrawn?

• Yes, withdraw the hardship assessment, go to Step 6
• No,
• Proceed with hardship calculation, see Table 2
• Due to assets the care recipient is ineligible for hardship, see Table 2, Step 13

Hardship assessment may be withdrawn when the care recipient/nominee:

• has not given the information or supporting documents requested in the hardship RFI letter
• requests the withdrawal of their claim verbally or in writing at any time before the claim is determined

If the care recipient subsequently provides the requested information within 13 weeks, the original application can be used.

To complete withdrawal:

• Make 2 genuine attempts to phone the care recipient or nominee/authorised representative to advise the outcome
• Document contact attempts, see Advising verbally of an unfavourable decision
• Annotate and complete the Hardship Prog of claim Fast Note clearly stating what details are required to reassess the claim
• Create a new Fast Note. Select Auto Text, use Aged Care > Hardship > Care type > WTHDRN
• In the Aged Care Staff Portal (ACSP) go to Care recipient > Care recipient notes and Fast Note text
• Use date of receipt (DOR) as the date of withdrawal
• Copy the DOC from Customer First

In the ACSP:

• Create care recipient note in ACSP. see Aged Care Staff Portal (ACSP) – Care Recipient in Context (CRiC) for details
• Procedure ends here

Is the Hardship assistance claim for:

• Home care, go to Step 2
• Permanent residential care or residential respite care, go to Step 3

Check ACMPS for an existing hardship assessment:

• Locate care recipient record in ACMPS
• Current and historical hardship located on Hardship & Income Suspension

To check for historical hardship, go to Customer First and check the Document List (DL) screen for previous hardship grants.

Hardship is only coded for periods that a care recipient is in care:

• If coding hardship for a previous period/s in care, the end date will be coded as the day before departure

Does ACMPS show that the care recipient has started home care?

• Yes, care recipient:
• has a pre-entry claim but has now entered care, go to Step 5
• is currently in care or claiming hardship for a previous period of care, go to Step 6
• No, go to Step 4

Check ACSP for an existing hardship assessment:

• Locate care recipient record in ACSP
• Current and historical hardship located on Hardship >Hardship summary

To check for historical hardship, go to Customer First and check the Document List (DL) screen for previous hardship grants.

Hardship is only coded for periods that a care recipient is in care:

• Check the Care recipient summary to confirm start and end dates for all care types
• If coding hardship for a previous period/s in care, the end date will be coded as the day before departure

Does ACSP show that the care recipient has started respite or permanent residential care?

• Yes, care recipient:
• has a pre-entry claim but has now entered care, go to Step 5
• is currently in care or claiming hardship for a previous period of care, go to Step 6
• No, go to Step 4

For hardship assessments lodged before the care recipient enters care:

• the hardship start date is the date of lodgement
• use the current rates of income support payment (ISP), for example, the partnered rate if partner is not in care
• the ISP rate is reassessed when the care recipient starts care
• the hardship assessment is valid for 120 days from the date the claim is completed

Permanent residential care - calculating residential accommodation costs as an essential expense (pre-entry assessments):

• If the care recipient is low means, assess the accommodation contribution up to the maximum accommodation supplement amount, see the Resources page for a link to the Schedule of Fees and Charges for residential care
• If the care recipient is not low means, and the refundable accommodation deposit (RAD) is not known:
• use the maximum accommodation supplement amount as the default for accommodation costs
• see the Resources page for a link to the aged care fee calculator
• Go to Step 6

The below relates to home, permanent residential or residential respite care.

If the care recipient has entered care within 120 days of the pre-entry assessment, complete a new calculator assessment using the pre-entry expenses as at the date of entry into care.

If the care recipient has entered care outside of the 120 days of the pre-entry assessment, a new claim needs to be completed with expenses provided as of date of entry into care:

• Confirm date of entry into care
• Confirm fees have been set for entry
• Review previous hardship assessment calculations:
• changes to income (for example, care recipient now illness separated)
• expenses that may no longer apply (such as rent assistance)
• additional expenses that may now apply
• add calculated means tested care fee (MTCF)/income tested care fee (ITCF)
• permanent residential care – confirm accommodation costs from residential/accommodation agreement provided and add to Fortnightly Expenses

Go to Step 9 to complete a new hardship calculation using date of entry into care the date of hardship assessment.

The hardship start date is the date the care recipient first experienced hardship. This may be the date the care recipient:

• started receiving care
• lodged the claim, or
• showed they meet the criteria for hardship assistance (even if the start date written is later)

Determine the start date based on information provided, all calculations and information will apply from this start date.

Ongoing hardship claims

• If a care recipient lodges a new hardship claim for the same type of care before the end of a current hardship period:
• start date is the date of lodgement of assessment
• If a care recipient lodges a new hardship claim for the same type of care after the end of a current hardship period. Start date will be either:
• previous hardship end date +1, or
• date they met criteria for hardship assistance
• If a care recipient lodges a new hardship claim for a different type of care before the end of a current hardship period, new application is required. Start date will be:
• the date criteria is met, or
• date of entry to care type, whichever is earlier

When completing hardship calculations, use the full fees for a care recipient, not the current hardship reduced fee. For ongoing claims, check if there were any issues with previous claim:

For all care types, go to Step 7

At the hardship start date, the care recipient must have total assets below the relevant asset threshold.

The Resources page contains information on the types of assets that cannot be sold or borrowed against, and the current and historical thresholds for financial hardship - assets.

Using the relevant thresholds, determine the:

• total assessable assets
• value of any assets that cannot be sold or borrowed against (unrealisable asset)
• care recipient's net assets:
• total assessable assets - value of any assets that cannot be sold or borrowed against = net assets

Note: if assets are above the threshold and later reduce, the hardship assistance start date changes.

Is the care recipient eligible for hardship assistance based on the total net assets?

• Yes, go to Step 8
• No, go to Step 13

Include any income (see below) into the fortnightly income calculation as at the start date of the hardship claim.

At the hardship start date, the care recipient must have total income below the relevant income threshold after essential expenses have been deducted.

The Resources page contains information on the current and historical thresholds for financial hardship - income.

Using the relevant thresholds, determine the:

• annual income amounts, show on the RCA Income Assessment Summary (RIAS) screen
• Energy Supplement (displayed as CES)
• Rent Assistance (RA), check Payment Summary (PS) to confirm if CES and RA are paid with an ISP
• Defence Force Income Support Allowance (DFISA) for periods of entitlement up to, and including, 31 December 2021, check DFISA Summary (DFS)

Note: NDIS is not included as income. See, Allowable and non-allowable essential expenses information on the Resources page.

Has the care recipient departed from care (including deceased) or is a Pre 1 July 2014 residential care recipient?

• Yes, go to Step 10
• No, go to Step 9

At the hardship start date, the care recipient must have net income (total income minus essential expenses) below the relevant income threshold. See the Financial hardship current and historical thresholds - assets and income table on the Resources page.

CSR to zero

If a care recipient’s CSR is set to zero, they do not have to pay any ITCF/MTCF for that period. They still have to pay any Basic Daily Fee (BDF) and Accommodation costs (for residential care).

Service Officers must consider any previous application of care subsidy reduction (CSR) to zero before finalising the hardship assessment.

See Aged Care fees and charges - care subsidy reduction to zero for assistance.

Use Hardship Calculator in ACMPS.

When calculating amounts, figures are rounded up to 2 decimal places:

• In ACSP, refer to Fees and charges > Fees and charges details to confirm historical and current fees and charges
• Home care and respite care:
• All fees pre-populate in Fortnightly Expenses if the care recipient has started care
• Manually add income tested care fee (ITCF) in Fortnightly Expenses for pre entry hardship claims (homecare only)
• Residential care:
• Basic daily fee (BDF) pre-populates in Fortnightly Expenses
• Manually add means tested care fee (MTCF), income tested fee (ITCF) and/or accommodation costs in Fortnightly Expenses
• For continuation of hardship calculations - the amount coded should equal the fee a care recipient is liable to pay, prior to any hardship being granted

To complete the hardship entitlement calculation:

• go to the Hardship & Income Suspension tab
• select the New Assessment button in Hardship Assessments to open the Hardship Calculator
• select the relevant care type in the Customer and Assessment Details section:
• Home Care
• Resi Care-Non Standard
• Resi Care-Protected
• Resi Care-Standard
• Respite Care
• an error message displays and stops the hardship assessment finalising if there is:
• no means assessment (for the hardship type assessed)
• no ACAT approval (home care only)
• key the start date in the Assessment Date field
• key the total Number of Dependent Children field. Note: this field defaults to 0
• the Total Income field auto populates from the Means Testing Data tab
• select the Assets are Below Threshold checkbox:
• this confirms the assets are under the threshold
• key the relevant fortnightly income threshold in the 15% of Basic Single Pension Rate field:
• see the Financial hardship current and historical thresholds - assets and income table on the Resources page
• key pharmaceutical expenses (if needed) in Pharmaceuticals Average:
• select the Insert button for each new month. Note: 3 months must be added or no months
• key the month, year, and total amount fields
• Days In Month field auto populates
• key any additional income in Fortnightly Income:
• select the Insert button
• select the income type from the drop down under Income Payment Type
• key the income amount under Earned Fortnightly Income
• if Other Income is used, details must be added to the Income Comment field
• key essential expenses (if needed) in Fortnightly Expenses:
• see the Resources page for a List of allowable essential expenses
• if an allowable expense has been claimed but no evidence provided, the expense can be accepted up to the relevant monthly threshold limit (if applicable) for the expense
• if a non-allowable expense has been claimed, remove the expense from the calculation
• add notes in calculator to explain decision
• select the Insert button
• select the fee or expense type from the drop down under Payment Type
• key the expense amount under Total Expenses
• if payment type of Other is used, details must be added to the Comments field
• use the Comments field to explain instance when expense calculated does not match amount claimed on form
• use expense type Accommodation Payment for residential care accommodation costs. Check MTF or MTC notional fee in Reconciliation tab in ACSP to confirm liability. For example, daily accommodation charge, daily accommodation contribution (DAC) or daily accommodation payment (DAP). Note: Extra Service Fees are not an allowable expense
• when all expenses are keyed:
• select the Calculate button.
  Note: the Assessment Results section only shows once the calculate button is selected
• add comments under Assessment Comments (optional)
• select Save
• if no errors display, select the Back button to return to Hardship Assessments
• in Hardship Assessment the Reduction Amount (daily) displays:
• dollar amount ($) if eligible for a hardship reduction, or
• ineligible if the care recipient is ineligible for a hardship reduction

Note: home care only - if the hardship assessment date is before 27 February 2017, the package level remains blank in Hardship Assessment.

Is the care recipient eligible for hardship assistance?

• Yes, go to Step 11
• No, go to Step 13

For care recipients who have departed from care (including deceased), or for Pre 1 July 2014 residential care recipients:

• manually calculate the fortnightly income and expenses
• calculate the income as at the Hardship start date
• see Resources for a link to the Aged Care Fee Calculator

Pre 1 July 2014

For calculations for dates earlier than 1 July 2014, use 1/07/2014 as the assessment date. Manually calculate and input the basic daily fee information in the ‘Fortnightly Hardship Amount’ section. Accommodation costs are assessed separately for hardship reduction.

If assessing financial hardship for accommodation charge use the unrealisable assets amount in the pre 1 July 2014 accommodation calculator.

Note: to calculate the unrealisable assets amount, calculate assets at entry and minus assets at assessment date.

After determining the hardship grant for accommodation charge, the BDF and ITF reduction can be calculated based on assessment of current income and expenses (do not include accommodation charge in this calculation).

To complete the Hardship entitlement calculation:

• open the Hardship Subsidy Calculator tab
• in the Fortnightly Income section, add the care recipient's claimed assessable income types
• in the Fortnightly Expenses (Other) section, add the care recipient's claimed essential expenses:
• use the drop down boxes to select the types of expenses
• record details of 'Other' expenses in the Comments field
• the Fortnightly Hardship Amount section:
• displays the updated information
• includes the Hardship assistance amount
• select, Create Output PDF option to create a PDF document
• save PDF to the ‘Customer Information’ folder located on your team’s shared drive’. Do not save customer information to desktops or personal H drives
• upload PDF to the care recipient's Customer First record

Is the care recipient eligible for Hardship assistance?

• Yes, go to Step 11
• No, go to Step 13

Grant duration (end date)

Hardship assistance is granted for:

• 3 years, to be used when:
• a care recipient is in permanent residential care and their circumstances are not likely to change
• post 1 July 2014 scheme care recipients who have an asset that is unreasonable to sell due to joint ownership or a near relative living in the home
• pre 1 July 2014 scheme residential care recipients who no longer have funds to pay for an accommodation charge or bond
• 12 months, to be used when:
• Hardship is granted for home or residential respite care
• A temporary situation is causing hardship, such as being unable to sell a property
• Less than 12 months to be used when:
• Legal investigation/action to recoup misappropriated funds
• Structural damage repair due to natural disasters

Note: correct duration of grant period should be used to ensure hardship determinations are applied correctly and do not disadvantage care recipients.

When granting a hardship claim, the end date is determined by the grant duration minus 1. See the Frequently Asked Questions table on the Resources page for more examples.

Take note of the end date and review requirements. See Table 4, Step 9 for more information on Reviews.

New Pre entry assessments

When a care recipient has not yet entered care, the end date is 120 days from the date the assessment is completed and is also the date the hardship pre-approval is valid until. Hardship is only coded when the care recipient starts care within this period. Procedure ends here.

Residential respite care

When a care recipient:

• is currently in residential respite care, the end date will be:
• 12 months from date of assessment if no end date recorded, or
• end date of residential respite care period if coded in ACSP
• has left residential respite care – end date is one day prior to departure date

The hardship assessment remains valid for original period (for example, 12 months). If a care recipient starts residential respite care again in the 12 months validity period, it can be coded without a new claim being lodged. If the residential respite care is with a different provider, a new letter to the service will be required.

Finalise the hardship assessment:

• Home care, see Table 3, Step 1
• Permanent residential or respite care, see Table 4, Step 1

Make 2 genuine attempts to telephone the care recipient/nominee/authorised representative to advise the outcome:

• Document all attempts. See Advising verbally of an unfavourable decision (CLK)

Create a manual letter using the Hardship Reject templates and upload to Aged Care Staff Portal (ACSP). See Aged care letters - creating manual letters to complete letter templates. To upload documents:

• Upload hardship manual letters to ACSP as a PDF using the following field details:
• Letter code*: Resi Care Legacy
• Letter Description: update this field with code and letter type (i.e. AC-HARDSHIP REJECT – CR)
• Upload Hardship Calculations (if completed) to Document Tools  in Customer First as a PDF. See Attaching electronic documents to a Centrelink customer's record using Document Tools in Customer First.

Complete the Customer First Progress of Claim DOC:

• Add a Fast Note. Select Auto Text, use Aged Care > Hardship > Aged Care Fin Hardship <Home/Res/RSP> Care REJECT using DOR as date of rejection. Include:
• calculation information and outcome of the assessment, or
• reason for hardship being rejected prior to calculation
• In ACMPS, open Notes tab and copy Reject Fast Note information
• Create a care recipient note in ACSP and copy Reject Fast Note information
• Procedure ends here

Apply hardship assistance to aged care fees in the same order as below:

• Basic daily fee (BDF)
• Income tested care fee (ITCF)

If only one fee is selected on the hardship claim:

• contact the care recipient or authorised third party by phone and discuss:
• the hardship grant, and
• the fees hardship is applied to
• if the contact is unsuccessful:
• only grant hardship to the selected fee
• create a Fast Note. Document if the contact was successful/unsuccessful

Apply fee reduction to reduce BDF. When the total hardship reduction is more than the BDF:

• BDF reduces to $0
• Apply the remainder to the income tested subsidy reduction (ITCF)
• Hardship reduction minus BDF = amount of reduction for ITCF

A care recipient must enter care before recording the hardship assessment in ACMPS.

• Check the Assessments & Events tab Entry Details

Has the care recipient started receiving home care?

• Yes, go to Step 2
• No, go to Step 3

Before adding or updating the hardship assessment details:

• check ACMPS under the Hardship & Income Suspension tab for an existing hardship assessment recorded

If there are existing BDF and/or ITCF hardship details recorded:

• select Edit List in the relevant hardship record (Maintain Hardship BDF or Maintain Hardship ITF)
• If both fee types are recorded, end date each fee type separately
• select the Correction button and End date the record one day before the start date of the new assessment
• add notes in the Hardship Comments field
• select Save

To code hardship assistance for home care in ACMPS:

• go to the Hardship & Income Suspension tab
• select Edit List in the Maintain Hardship BDF and/or Maintain Hardship ITF field
• select Insert to create a new record line
• in the Hardship Type field, select from the dropdown menu the applicable fee reduction option:
• BDF as a partial supplement or BDF to $0
• ITF as a partial reduction or ITF to $0
• in the Hardship Amount field, if the hardship type is:
• BDF/ITF as a partial supplement/reduction, key the hardship assistance amount
• BDF to $0, do not key an amount. The system sets the BDF to $0 automatically
• if the hardship assistance grant reduces the ITCF to less than $1, ACMPS automatically sets the ITCF to $0
• add notes in the Hardship Comments field:
• The assessment creation date and time displays under Hardship Assessment
• key the Start Date field with the hardship assistance start date
• key the End Date field with the hardship assistance end date
• select Save to apply the hardship assistance

The hardship assistance displays in a separate line in the provider's payment statement:

• BDF hardship assistance displays as BDF Hardship
• ITCF hardship assistance displays as CSR Hardship

Create a manual letter using the Hardship Grant templates and upload to Aged Care Staff Portal (ACSP) See Aged care letters - creating manual letters on how to complete letter templates. To upload documents:

• Upload hardship manual letters to ACSP as a PDF using the following field details:
• Letter code*: Home Care Legacy
• Letter Description: update this field with code and letter type (i.e. AC-HARDSHIP GRANT – CR)
• Upload Hardship Calculations (if completed) to Document Tools in Customer First as a PDF. See Attaching electronic documents to a Centrelink customer's record using Document Tools in Customer First

The letters advise:

• the fee amounts payable e.g. the maximum BDF payable is $10.75, and the care recipient needs to pay $1.75
• fees are subject to indexation

• Complete the Customer First Progress of Claim DOC
• Add Aged Care Financial Hardship Granted Fast Note. Include:
• hardship assistance start and end dates
• calculations
• assessment outcome
• use DOR as the date of grant
• Select Notes in ACMPS, and add the same details
• Create a care recipient note in ACSP and add the same details

Is the hardship assistance grant for 3 years?

• Yes, see Table 4, Step 9 to set a 12 month review
• No, procedure ends here

Apply hardship assistance to aged care fees in the same order as below:

• Basic daily fee (BDF)
• Means tested care fee (MTCF)
• Accommodation contribution (MTC)/daily accommodation payment (DAP)

If there are any existing hardship supplements recorded, they must be end dated one day before the start date of the new hardship assessment.

Check ACSP for an existing hardship assessment:

• Locate care recipient record in ACSP
• Current and historical hardship located on Hardship >Hardship summary

To check for historical hardship, go to Customer First and check the Document List (DL) screen for previous hardship grants.

Hardship is only coded for periods that a care recipient is in care:

• Check the Care recipient summary to confirm start and end dates for all care types
• If coding hardship for a previous period/s in care, the end date will be coded as the day before departure

Does ACSP show that the care recipient has started respite or permanent residential care?

• Yes,
• Care recipient is currently in care
• Care recipient is claiming hardship for a previous period of care
• go to Step 2
• No,
• Pre entry hardship has been granted
• Hardship cannot be coded until care starts
• go to Step 8

For BDF hardship, the care recipient contribution is the only field coded. This amount will remain constant for the period of hardship, and CPI changes that affect the BDF and the fee reduction amount will be applied automatically.

In ACSP:

• Locate care recipient record
• Go to Hardship > Hardship summary
• If there is a current BDF hardship coded that needs to be end dated:
• From summary screen, select Status field: Created/Updated
• View hardship screen will display details of current hardship
• To change, select Update
• On Update hardship screen, change the end date to the day prior to the new start date
• Select Update
• Select Go to hardship summary
• Select Register hardship and complete required fields:
• Hardship type: Basic Daily Fee
• Start date: hardship start date - must be on or after start date of care type
• End date: hardship end date
• Maximum hardship reduction: select yes or no
• Care recipient contribution: if not maximum, code the amount of BDF that a care recipient is liable to pay
• Fee reduction amount: will be populated once coding completed and appear in a table on Hardship summary screen, including CPI changes
• Reason: select most appropriate from list
• Additional notes: mandatory field for relevant information on grant
• Select Submit
• Receipt will confirm successful coding and table will show fee reduction amounts for each CPI date
• Error will present if hardship was not able to be registered

To view a completed hardship assessment in ACSP including fee table and notes, go to Hardship summary and select hyperlink in Status column for current hardship.

Is this care recipient eligible for a further reduction of fees due to hardship?

• Yes,
• To code hardship for ITF, MTCF or AC, go to Step 3
• To code hardship for Post 1 July 2014 RAD/DAP, go to Step 4
• To code hardship for pre 1 July 2014 accommodation costs, go to Step 5
• No, care recipient is not eligible for further hardship reduction, go to Step 8

Ensure any income and asset updates have been made and an ad-hoc review completed to update fees, where required, refer to Aged care reviews - ad hoc reviews.

For ITF, MTCF and MTC fees:

• the care recipient contribution is coded from the start date and will not be updated after this. This amount will be used to populate fees on a hardship letter when they are issued in ACSP
• the fee reduction amount as at the start date is coded. This amount remains constant for the period of hardship unless hardship is reviewed
• if there are changes to circumstances that affect the fees a care recipient is liable to pay, the care recipient contribution will be adjusted
• current fees will be reflected on Fees and charges > Fees and charges details

In ACSP:

• Go to Hardship > Hardship summary
• If there is a current ITF/MTCF or AC hardship coded that needs to be end dated
• From summary screen, select Status field: Created/Updated
• View hardship screen will display details of current hardship
• To change, select Update
• On Update hardship screen, change the end date to the day prior to the new start date
• Select Update
• Select Go to hardship summary
• Select Register hardship and complete required fields:
• Hardship type: select relevant fee type
• Start date: hardship start date
• End date: hardship end date
• Maximum hardship reduction: Will always be No
• Care recipient contribution: code this amount as at start date
• Fee reduction amount: code the fee reduction that applies for this fee type, this amount will remain constant for period of hardship
• Reason: select most appropriate from list
• Additional notes: mandatory field for relevant information on grant
• Select Submit
• Receipt will confirm successful coding
• Error will present if hardship was not able to be registered
• Repeat for any ITF, MTCF or AC hardship reduction

Is this care recipient eligible for a further reduction of fees due to hardship?

• Yes,
• to code hardship for Post 1 July 2014 RAD/DAP, go to Step 4
• to code hardship for pre 1 July 2014 accommodation costs, go to Step 7
• No, care recipient is not eligible for further hardship reduction, go to Step 8

For RAD/DAP hardship:

• The care recipient contribution coded and will remain constant for the period of hardship
• The fee reduction amount will not be displayed
• The service will be paid a hardship accommodation supplement from 1 August 2022
• This supplement will be the maximum accommodation supplement payable for the service less any care recipient contribution
• Any RAD/DAP hardship granted for a period prior to 1 August 2022 will be paid as a manual adjustment by Health Service Delivery Division (HSDD)

In ACSP, go to Hardship > Hardship summary and review current hardship coding.

Is the start date for this grant of RAD/DAP hardship, or date of effect for correction or change to RAD/DAP hardship prior to the 1 August 2022?

• Yes, go to Step 5
• No, go to Step 6

Any RAD/DAP hardship granted for a period prior to 1 August 2022 will be paid as a manual adjustment by Health Service Delivery Division (HSDD). Any subsequent review or correction to RAD/DAP hardship for period prior to 1 August 2022 will also need to be completed as a manual adjustment. For any period from 1 August 2022, hardship supplements will be adjusted automatically.

Example: Care recipient granted RAD/DAP hardship from 1 March 2022

• RAD/DAP hardship is coded in ACSP from 1 March 2022
• Supplement is paid manually to the service for period 1 March 2022 to 31 July 2022
• Supplements will be paid automatically from 1 August 2022
• A review of hardship changes the RAD/DAP hardship reduction amount
• Details from 1 March 2022 to 31 July 2022 will need to be referred to HSDD for a manual adjustment to be paid
• ACSP updated coding will then adjust any RAD/DAP hardship from 1 August 2022 onwards

Send a LPS escalation

• Aged Care > Enquiry 1 Providers > Enquiry 2 Adjustments > Enquiry 3 Hardship
• Provider team does manual adjustment
• Note escalation on care recipient’s record in the relevant system (ACSP/ACMPS)

Go to Step 6.

Coding hardship reduction for a DAP in ACSP:

• If there is a current RAD/DAP hardship coded that needs to be end dated:
• From summary screen, select Status field: Created/Updated
• View hardship screen will display details of current hardship
• To change, select Update
• On Update hardship screen, change the end date to the day prior to the new start date
• Select Update

Note: any change prior to 1 August 2022 will need to be added to spreadsheet in previous step for a manual adjustment

• Select Go to hardship summary
• Select Register hardship and complete required fields:
• Hardship type: RAD/DAP Accommodation Payment – Post July 2014
• Start date: hardship start date
• End date: hardship end date
• Maximum hardship reduction: Select yes or no
• Care recipient contribution: if not maximum, code the amount of RAD DAP that a care recipient is liable to pay
• Fee reduction amount: will not be displayed
• Reason: select most appropriate from list
• Additional notes: mandatory field for relevant information on grant – include the text “Hardship granted for RAD DAP. Full RAD DAP payment is $NN.NN per day”
• Select Submit
• Receipt will confirm successful coding
• Error will present if hardship was not able to be registered

Go to Step 8.

In ACSP:

• Go to Hardship > Hardship summary
• If there is a current hardship coded that needs to be end dated:
• From summary screen, select Status field: Created/Updated
• View hardship screen will display details of current hardship
• To change, select Update
• On Update hardship screen, change the end date to the day prior to the new start date
• Select Update
• Select Go to hardship summary
• Select Register hardship and complete required fields:
• Hardship type: relevant accommodation cost for Pre July 2014 or Pre March 2008
• Start date: hardship start date
• End date: hardship end date
• Care recipient contribution: if not maximum, code the daily amount of accommodation cost that care recipient is liable to pay
• Fee reduction amount: will be populated once coding completed
• Reason: select most appropriate from list
• Additional notes: mandatory field for relevant information on grant
• Select Submit
• Receipt will confirm successful coding
• Error will present if hardship was not able to be registered

Create a manual letter using the Hardship Grant templates and upload to Aged Care Staff Portal (ACSP) See Aged care letters - creating manual letters on how to complete letter templates. To upload documents:

• Upload hardship manual letters to ACSP as a PDF, using the following field details:
• Letter code*: Resi Care Legacy
• Letter Description: update this field with code and letter type (i.e. AC-HARDSHIP GRANT – CR)
• Upload Hardship Calculations (if completed) to Document Tools  in Customer First as a PDF. See  Attaching electronic documents to a Centrelink customer's record using Document Tools in Customer First

The letters advise:

• the care recipient contribution for all fee types
• the start and end dates that hardship is applied
• for pre-entry hardship assessments - care recipient/nominee must contact the agency when they do start care

Record decision in Customer First:

• Add the Fast Note - Fast note>Auto Text>Aged Care>Hardship>AC Fin Hardship (relevant Grant doc) Aged Care Financial Hardship Granted and include:
• hardship assistance start and end dates
• calculations
• assessment outcome
• use DOR as date of grant
• Complete the Customer First Progress of Claim DOC

In ACSP – Care recipient > Care recipient notes:

• Select Add note
• Select Subject: Other
• In Note field, add a short summary of the decision outcome including:
• all fees that have reduced
• amounts
• period of reduction (start and end dates)
• a note that manual letters have been sent
• Service Officer's username and logon
• Select Submit

Is the hardship grant for 3 years?

• Yes, go to Step 10
• No, procedure ends here

Annual reviews establish continuing eligibility for hardship assistance grants for 3 years. A review may also be set to confirm that details have not changed when deemed necessary.

When setting the review, include information on the action needed. For example, if a review is needed for an asset that is unable to be sold or borrowed against, include the property address to check if asset has been sold.

• Hardship assistance granted for 3 years should have an annual review to confirm continuing eligibility
• The review is set for 12 months from the assessment completion date
• For example, a review may be needed when an asset is assessed as unable to be sold or borrowed against because:
• the joint title holder is unwilling to sell a property
• a family member is living in the home

A care recipient can ask for a review of the hardship assistance before the hardship end date, for example if essential expenses have increased.

See, Aged care financial hardship assistance – review/cease/revoke for more information.

Set a 12 month review

In Customer First, create a manual review on the Review Registration (RVR) screen and complete the fields as follows:

• Service Reason: RCA
• Review Reason: HDP (Hardship Assessment Review)
• Due Date: 12 months from assessment date
• Source: INT
• Date of Receipt: today's date
• Notes: 'Check current financial circumstances of the care recipient to determine if they still meet eligibility for hardship assistance.'
• Keyword: HRTG
• Workgroup: leave blank
• Position: leave blank
• Transfer to Region: leave blank

The review will mature on the Due Date coded in the RVR activity. Workload Management will allocate the review for manual action.

See, Aged care financial hardship assistance – review/cease/revoke.