The Minister for Seniors has announced that a fund to support older New Zealanders transfer from hospitals, to be cared for in aged residential care and the community will continue.

Aged Care Association chief executive Tracey Martin says, "There’s no money in the Budget for older New Zealanders, so the Government has resorted to announcing the continuation of existing funds as a win.

The continuation of the current $6 million funding for another four years is an insult to the tens of thousands of older New Zealanders who need, and will need in future, aged care in this country.

It is likely that more money has been spent on expensive reports over the last decade; reports that highlight again and again how underfunded the aged care sector is, and how unprepared our society is to provide the care at least a quarter of all New Zealanders over the age of 85 will need.

And let's be clear, government doesn’t fund residential aged care providers, the key relationship is between the government and the individual New Zealander. It is the senior who is assessed as needing care, it is the senior who is asset and income tested, it is the senior who is recommended by a government agency to enter residential care for safety and clinical care needs.

This is who the Government is thumbing their nose at - the person who needs care, not our members, who provide the care. Our members are working as hard and as efficiently as they can to keep their doors open, to care for our elders.

If Government can’t acknowledge that positive and sustainable change can only happen if we are included, then we are all in trouble. The $6 million fund might still be there to help seniors transfer from hospital, but it is increasingly likely that there will be nowhere for them to transfer to."

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