Aged care homes charge residents for once-free TVs and breakfasts

What providers are charging

Major aged care operators have begun billing residents daily fees for services once considered standard, including in-room televisions, wi-fi and hot breakfasts, under a scheme introduced on 1 November 2025. The Higher Everyday Living Fee (HELF) was established under the Aged Care Act 2024 as an optional charge for services beyond those mandated by the Act and the Aged Care Quality Standards.^[1]

Uniting told families at The Marion in Sydney's inner west that a free-to-air TV in a resident's room would cost $8.80 a day, about $3,200 a year, the ABC reported.^[4] Opal HealthCare's trial at Carine Parkside in Perth charged $12.50 a day for a hot breakfast and $15 a day for wine or beer with a meal.^[4]

Opal's rollout and the $190,000 refund

Opal HealthCare refunded or credited over $190,000 to almost 350 residents after reviewing its HELF arrangements following scrutiny by the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission.^[3][5] Opal, the largest provider with 148 homes, is now rolling the fees out across all of them, the ABC reported.^[4]

Aged Care Quality and Safety Commissioner Liz Hefren-Webb said the regulator's focus remained on protecting residents. "Our regulatory and complaints work is focused on protecting residents, ensuring the standard service offer meets the requirements of residents and ensuring providers meet their obligations," Hefren-Webb said.^[3]

Who is protected and who is not

From 1 November 2026, providers must not charge a HELF for services residents were receiving at no extra cost immediately before 1 November 2025.^[2] Under the Aged Care Rules 2025, only residents already in care before that date carry this protection.^[6]

Residents who moved into a facility after 1 November 2025 receive no such guarantee and may be charged HELF for services that had been free for previous residents at that same facility.

Minister for Aged Care and Seniors Sam Rae acknowledged the tension in the scheme. "We've always said it was unreasonable for providers to start charging older Australians for services they previously received at no cost. We've listened to older people and we are acting now to make the rules clear and strengthen protections for older Australians," Rae said.^[7]

Advocates and families push back

The Older Persons Advocacy Network raised concerns about bundled charges for free-to-air television, telephone and internet access, and limited transparency around how those bundles are priced. In a July information sheet, OPAN said: "Without clear and consistent guidance, HELF risks creating a two-tiered aged care system, where quality of life may depend on a resident's ability to pay rather than genuine choice."^[8]

The Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission's Quality Bulletin confirmed that HELF rules require charges to apply only to optional additional services, with providers prohibited from billing for any service included in standard care before 1 November 2025.^[6] The Commission said its reviews had led to services being restored or made available at no additional cost to residents.^[3]