What Services Can Support at Home Pay For?

Key Takeaway

How Are Support at Home Services Organised?

The official Support at Home service list contains three main contribution categories:

The official list contains multiple service types and individual services within these categories. Each service also includes guidance about what activities are in scope and what activities are excluded.

What Clinical Supports Can Be Funded?

Clinical supports are services that help manage health conditions, functional decline, nutrition, mobility and other clinical needs.

Depending on the person’s assessment and support plan, Support at Home may pay for services such as:

Clinical support does not replace services that should be provided through Medicare, hospitals, state health systems or another clinical program.

The provider should explain which clinical services belong within Support at Home and which should be accessed through another health system.

Can Support at Home Pay For Personal Care?

Yes. Support at Home can fund approved personal care where the person needs help completing essential daily activities.

Personal care may include assistance with:

• showering and bathing
• dressing and grooming
• toileting and continence routines
• eating and drinking
• getting in and out of bed
• basic mobility around the home
• self-administration of medication where permitted

The service should support the person to do as much as they can safely manage rather than automatically taking over every task.

From 1 October 2026, approved personal care services under Support at Home will be fully government-funded where personal care is included in the participant’s support plan and sufficient funding is available.

Can Support at Home Pay For Transport?

Support at Home may fund approved transport assistance when transport helps the person maintain independence, access essential services or participate in the community.

This may include support to attend:

• medical or allied health appointments
• shopping and essential errands
• social activities
• community programs
• other approved appointments or activities

The form of transport support may vary. It could involve a worker accompanying the person, transport arranged by the provider or another approved transport service.

The service agreement should explain how transport is priced, what is included and whether any restrictions apply.

Can Support at Home Pay For Social Support?

Yes. Approved social support may be funded when it helps reduce isolation, maintain relationships or support community participation.

Depending on the person’s needs, this may include:

• one-to-one social support
• accompanied community activities
• support to attend appointments or groups
• group-based social activities
• assistance maintaining community connections

Social support should have a clear purpose connected to the person’s wellbeing, independence or participation goals.

It is not intended to fund ordinary entertainment, holidays or general lifestyle spending unrelated to assessed aged care needs.

Can Support at Home Pay For Respite?

Support at Home may pay for approved respite services that give an unpaid carer a temporary break while ensuring the older person continues receiving appropriate support.

Respite may help when:

• a family carer needs regular time away
• the carer has appointments or other responsibilities
• the care arrangement is becoming difficult to sustain
• the older person needs supervision while the carer is unavailable
• a planned break may prevent carer burnout or crisis

The type, frequency and setting of respite should be agreed with the provider and reflected in the care plan and individualised budget.

Can Support at Home Pay For Cleaning?

Yes. Domestic assistance may be funded when the person cannot safely or reasonably complete essential household tasks because of age-related care needs.

Approved domestic assistance may include tasks such as:

• vacuuming and mopping
• cleaning bathrooms and kitchens
• laundry and changing bed linen
• basic household organisation
• other essential cleaning connected to a safe living environment

The service is intended to maintain a safe and functional home. It is not an unlimited general housekeeping or premium cleaning service.

The provider should document which tasks are included, how long the visit lasts and what the worker is expected to complete.

Can Support at Home Pay For Gardening And Home Maintenance?

Support at Home may fund minor gardening, home maintenance or repairs when they are necessary to help the person remain safe and continue living at home.

This may include limited assistance with:

• reducing trip or access hazards
• basic lawn or garden maintenance
• minor repairs
• replacing simple fittings
• maintaining safe access around the home
• small safety-related household tasks

Support at Home is not intended to pay for major renovations, general property improvement, extensive landscaping or work that would normally be the owner’s responsibility regardless of aged care needs.

The distinction is usually whether the work is minor, necessary and directly connected to the person’s safety or independence.

Can Support at Home Pay For Meals?

Support at Home may fund approved assistance with meals and nutrition.

This may include:

• help planning suitable meals
• assistance preparing food at home
• meal delivery services
• nutrition support
• assistance with eating where personal care is required

The program may contribute to the cost of preparing or delivering an approved meal service, but the participant may still need to pay for the ordinary cost of the food or ingredients.

The provider should explain clearly which portion is covered through Support at Home and which portion remains the participant’s responsibility.

Can Support at Home Pay For Help With Shopping?

Support at Home may fund assistance that helps a person complete essential shopping or obtain necessary household items.

This may involve:

• a support worker accompanying the person
• a worker completing approved essential shopping
• help preparing a shopping list
• assistance arranging online grocery orders
• transport connected with essential shopping

The support worker’s time may be funded, but the participant remains responsible for paying for their groceries and ordinary personal purchases.

Can Support at Home Pay For Medication Assistance?

Medication-related support may be funded where it falls within an approved nursing, personal care or allied health service and is delivered within the worker’s professional role.

This may include:

• prompting a person to take medication
• assisting with self-administration where permitted
• nursing support for medication management
• monitoring medication-related concerns
• referring problems to a GP, pharmacist or other health professional

Support at Home does not generally pay for the medication itself when that cost belongs under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme or ordinary personal expenses.

The service agreement should clarify exactly what workers are authorised to do.

Can Support at Home Pay For Dementia Support?

Yes. A person living with dementia may use approved Support at Home services where those services respond to their assessed care needs.

Dementia-related support may involve a combination of:

• personal care
• nursing
• occupational therapy
• social support
• respite
• meal assistance
• transport
• domestic assistance
• assistive technology
• home modifications
• care management

Support at Home does not create a separate unlimited dementia budget. Services still need to fit within the person’s approval, available funding and care plan.

If dementia-related needs increase, the service arrangement may need review rather than simply adding more tasks to an already stretched budget.

Can Support at Home Pay For Assistive Technology?

Support at Home may provide separately allocated funding for approved assistive technology.

Assistive technology may include equipment that helps a person:

• move safely
• complete personal care tasks
• communicate
• manage daily activities
• reduce falls risk
• maintain independence

Examples may include approved mobility aids, shower equipment, transfer equipment, pressure-care products, communication devices or other prescribed items.

Not every item can be purchased directly from the participant’s ongoing quarterly budget. Items may need assessment, prescription or approval under the Assistive Technology and Home Modifications scheme.

The provider should confirm the approval pathway before an item is ordered or purchased.

Can Support at Home Pay For Home Modifications?

Approved home modifications may be funded where they help the person use their home safely and independently.

Examples may include:

• grab rails
• minor access changes
• ramps
• bathroom safety modifications
• doorway or threshold changes
• other prescribed safety modifications

Home modifications usually require professional assessment and must satisfy the official funding and scope requirements.

Support at Home is not a general home-renovation program. Cosmetic upgrades, ordinary maintenance and major works unrelated to assessed care needs are generally outside the program’s purpose.

What Is The Restorative Care Pathway?

The Restorative Care Pathway provides short-term, intensive support designed to help an older person improve or maintain function and independence.

It may be relevant after:

• illness
• injury
• a decline in mobility
• a hospital admission
• a change that has reduced the person’s ability to manage daily tasks

Services may include coordinated nursing, allied health, personal care and other restorative supports directed towards agreed goals.

This is a separate short-term pathway. It should not be confused with simply adding occasional allied health visits to an ongoing Support at Home budget.

What Is The End-of-Life Pathway?

The End-of-Life Pathway provides additional short-term support for eligible older people who have a life expectancy of three months or less and wish to remain at home.

The pathway complements rather than replaces state and territory palliative care services.

Depending on assessed needs, services may help with:

• personal care
• nursing
• care coordination
• equipment
• support for remaining safely at home

Eligibility must be confirmed through the required clinical and aged care assessment process.

Does Approval Mean Every Service Is Automatically Funded?

No. Several conditions need to align before Support at Home funding can be used for a service.

Can You Choose Any Combination Of Services?

Participants should have meaningful choice over how approved services are organised, but that choice operates within several boundaries.

The proposed service mix must remain consistent with:

• the Notice of Decision
• the support plan
• the official service list
• the person’s current needs and goals
• available quarterly funding
• provider capacity
• applicable contribution arrangements

A person does not necessarily need every service mentioned in their support plan at the same frequency.

The individualised budget should translate broad approval into a realistic service schedule that can be sustained across the quarter.

How Should Services Be Prioritised?

When the budget cannot fund every preferred service at the desired frequency, the provider and participant may need to decide what should come first.

Prioritising safety does not mean social connection, dignity and quality of life should be ignored.

The aim is to develop a balanced service mix rather than using the entire budget on the first visible problem.

What If The Service You Need Is Not In The Support Plan?

If a service is permitted under Support at Home but is not reflected in the person’s current plan, speak with the provider or care partner.

The next step may involve:

• reviewing the care plan
• reorganising the existing service mix
• confirming whether the need is already covered by the support plan
• seeking professional assessment for equipment or modifications
• requesting a support plan review
• requesting reassessment if needs have materially increased

A provider should not simply reject the request because the current schedule does not include it. The provider should explain whether the barrier is approval, scope, funding, evidence or service availability.

What You May Really Be Trying To Decide

The literal question is:

“Can Support at Home pay for this service?”

The deeper decision is usually:

“Which services will make the greatest practical difference before the funding runs out?”

A service can be technically eligible without being the strongest priority for the person right now.

Another service may appear less urgent but prevent a much larger problem. Respite may preserve the family care arrangement. Physiotherapy may reduce falls risk. Meal support may prevent weight loss. Social support may reduce isolation and help the person remain engaged.

The right service mix depends on the consequences of not providing each form of support.

Decision Support

Before adding, removing or replacing a service, consider four questions.

The goal is not to collect the largest possible list of services.

The goal is to build a care arrangement that uses available funding to reduce the most important risks while preserving the person’s independence, dignity and quality of life.

Summary

Support at Home can pay for approved clinical supports, independence services and everyday living services.

Depending on the person’s assessment and support plan, this may include nursing, allied health, personal care, transport, social support, respite, domestic assistance, meal support, gardening and minor home maintenance.

Separate funding may also be available for approved assistive technology, equipment and home modifications. Short-term Restorative Care and End-of-Life pathways may provide additional targeted support for eligible participants.

A service must be permitted under the official Support at Home service list, relate to assessed needs and fit within the person’s available funding and care arrangements.

The strongest service plan is not necessarily the one containing the most services. It is the one that directs limited funding towards the support most likely to preserve safety, independence and a sustainable life at home.