Hospitals nationwide grapple with a burgeoning issue: a surplus of elderly patients ready to transition to nursing homes but lacking available beds. State governments express frustration, contending that the federal government must do more to open up nursing home beds. This predicament compels states to incur substantial extra costs keeping these patients in hospitals, a burden they believe should not be theirs.The federal government has been implementing interim home care packages for older Australians in need of assistance, instead of the full packages initially promised. These interim packages provide only sixty percent of the assessed care needs and typically last for ten weeks before full funding commences. Since October, an astounding ninety-three percent of new home care recipients have received these interim packages.This situation unfolds amidst disclosures of a more significant-than-expected shortage of aged care workers. Despite recent pay increases, an additional thirty-five thousand aged care workers are needed this financial year alone. A departmental memo, obtained through freedom of information laws, reveals that nearly one hundred and twenty thousand more staff will be required by two thousand thirty-five to two thousand thirty-six, including nurses and personal care workers.The government previously underestimated this workforce gap due to a flaw in calculating care minutes for residents. An updated analysis now acknowledges that some older people require help for longer periods than initially assumed, significantly widening the estimated workforce shortage. Commonwealth and state ministers are scheduled to discuss these critical issues at a meeting on December twelfth.

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