Stolen Generations advocates welcome aged care reversal but warn survivors still face ‘gap within the gap’

Stolen Generations advocates have welcomed the Albanese government’s decision to scrap charges for basic aged care services such as showering and dressing… but warn that without deeper reform, ageing survivors remain trapped in a “gap within the gap” of financial hardship and disengagement from care.

The Healing Foundation said the change corrects a measure that should never have been considered in the first place.

The federal government reversed a controversial policy introduced in November 2025 that had seen older Australians paying around $50 an hour for basic personal care. Under the previous arrangement, pensioners and self-funded retirees were charged between 5 and 50 per cent of in-home support costs out of pocket. For some Stolen Generations survivors, the added costs led to reduced bathing and going without other services to afford essentials.

Aged Care Minister Sam Rae said basic personal care was not optional.

“Showering, dressing, continence care” are not “optional extras” Mr Rae said. “They’re the basics of aging with dignity, and no older Australian should miss out because of cost.”

The Healing Foundation chief executive Shane Larkin said the previous charges had undermined ageing Stolen Generations survivors’ dignity, trust and cultural safety at a stage of life when many were already carrying lifelong disadvantage.

“We are talking about essential hygiene” Mr Larkin said. “Not regularly showering, for example, could risk infection and health issues around bodily health. We cannot force survivors to choose between basic hygiene and other essential needs like food, solely because they can’t afford to pay for both.”

“If survivors are unable to afford these services… there is a real risk they may disengage altogether from aged care services, increasing health risks and social isolation — particularly for those already wary of institutional settings.”
— Shane Larkin, Healing Foundation CEO

Mr Larkin said many Stolen Generations survivors experienced a “gap within the gap”, with significantly higher rates of financial hardship than other older Australians.

What the changes mean

While the new arrangements take effect from October, co-payments for non-clinical care will continue. The Healing Foundation is advocating for a new Aged Care Act that protects the rights and dignity of Stolen Generations survivors, including shielding redress payments from aged care means testing.

Background: a generation still bearing the cost

The 1997 Bringing Them Home report estimated that between one in ten and one in three Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children were forcibly removed from their families between 1910 and 1970 under successive government and church policies. Survivors continue to experience higher rates of mental ill-health, financial hardship and social isolation than other Indigenous Australians of the same age.

Applications for the Territories Stolen Generations Redress Scheme (established for survivors removed in the Northern Territory, ACT and Jervis Bay Territory) closed on 28 February 2026, prompting renewed advocacy for ongoing reforms across all jurisdictions.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised this article references the Stolen Generations. Support is available through The Healing Foundation, 13YARN (13 92 76) and Lifeline (13 11 14).