Understanding the New Aged Care Act 2024: What Providers Need to Know
Overview From 1 July 2025, Australia’s aged care sector will enter a new era with the introduction of the Aged Care Act 2024.
This reform replaces the Aged Care Act 1997 and responds to the recommendations from the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety. The new Act introduces a rights-based, person-centred model of care and strengthens governance, reporting, and accountability across the sector. In this article, we break down the key legislative changes and what they mean for providers—and how Stopline can help.
The following article is a high level overview of some of the changes to the Aged Care Act, 2024.
1. A New Rights-Based Foundation for Aged Care
The foundation of the new legislation is a legally enforceable Statement of Rights, giving older Australians greater protection and dignity in care. These include rights to safety, respect, independence, and culturally appropriate services.
Key legislative inclusions:
Section 7: States the Act’s primary focus on human rights.
Section 15: Details the enforceable Statement of Rights.
Draft Rule 16: Requires providers to educate all staff on these obligations.
What this means for providers:
Policies must clearly reference and integrate the Statement of Rights.
All care staff must be trained in respectful, rights-based care practices.
Section 7 Explained (summary)
Section 7 of the Aged Care Act 2024 defines the objects and principles of the legislation, laying the philosophical and legal foundation for the entire Act. It establishes the central aim of the aged care system: to uphold and promote the rights, health, and wellbeing of older people, ensuring they receive high-quality, safe, and respectful care.
The section articulates a shift toward a person-centred and rights-based approach, mandating that care must be delivered in a way that recognises the inherent dignity, autonomy, and diversity of older Australians. It highlights key principles such as inclusion, transparency, accountability, and equitable access—ensuring the system is responsive to people from all backgrounds, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, culturally and linguistically diverse communities, LGBTI people, and those living in rural or remote areas.
By embedding these principles at the outset of the legislation, Section 7 influences the interpretation and application of every other provision in the Act. It requires providers, regulators, and policymakers to make decisions that are consistent with these core values, setting a new national standard for how aged care should be conceptualised and delivered.
Section 15 Explained (summary)
Section 15 of the Aged Care Act 2024 introduces the enforceable Statement of Rights, a cornerstone of the new legislation. This section sets out the fundamental rights that all individuals receiving aged care are entitled to—such as the right to be safe, to live free from abuse and neglect, to have control over their own care and daily decisions, and to be treated with dignity and respect.
Unlike previous frameworks where rights were often aspirational or implied, the rights under Section 15 are legally binding and must be upheld by all approved aged care providers. This means that any failure to respect or protect these rights can trigger regulatory action, including compliance notices, sanctions, or enforcement proceedings by the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission.
The Statement of Rights reflects Australia’s obligations under international human rights instruments and places the person receiving care at the centre of the aged care system. It ensures that care is not only clinically appropriate but also person-centred, respectful, and empowering.
To ensure these rights are meaningful in practice, aged care providers must embed them into their service delivery, policies, staff training, and complaint handling procedures. Additionally, residents and their families must be actively informed of these rights in accessible and culturally appropriate ways.
Section 15 signals a significant shift in aged care governance by moving from a provider-led model to a rights-based model, reinforcing transparency, accountability, and consumer empowerment across the sector.
Draft Rule 16 Explained (summary)
Draft Rule 16 supports the implementation of Section 15 by setting out mandatory obligations for providers to ensure their workforce is fully informed and trained in the Statement of Rights. It requires providers to take reasonable steps to embed these rights into everyday care delivery by educating all workers—whether employees, contractors, or volunteers—on the rights of care recipients.
This includes the development and delivery of appropriate induction and ongoing training, ensuring workers understand what the rights mean in practical terms and how to respect and uphold them in diverse care settings. The rule also encourages providers to tailor their communication and training methods to suit the needs of different staff cohorts and the specific care environments in which they operate.
Importantly, Draft Rule 16 is not merely a procedural requirement—it is an enforcement mechanism that ensures the Statement of Rights is not a symbolic document, but a living standard integrated into the culture, operations, and expectations of the aged care workforce. Failure to comply may attract scrutiny or enforcement action by the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission.
2. Reporting Wrongdoing: Aged Care Whistleblower Protections
Under Section 250 and Draft Rules 65, Part 7 & 8, the Act sets out a detailed framework for reporting misconduct and protecting whistleblowers.
What qualifies as an 'eligible disclosure'?
Breaches of care obligations or legal requirements.
Serious misconduct, abuse, neglect, or endangerment of a resident.
Who can make a disclosure?
Employees (current or former), contractors, volunteers.
Care recipients and their families, carers or advocates.
Suppliers or anyone with a direct connection to the provider.
Who receives the disclosure?
Senior managers or board members.
Designated internal whistleblower officers.
Stopline – as your independent services provider.
The Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission.
A best-practice workflow includes:
Lodgement via online or phone-based systems.
Acknowledgment within a few hours of making the report to Stopline.
Risk assessment and eligibility review.
Escalation to the appropriate recipient.
Fair and independent investigation.
Outcome and response management.
Internal recordkeeping and regulatory reporting.
What systems must providers implement?
According to Draft Rule 65, systems must:
Allow for anonymous, multi-channel reporting (phone, online, in-person);
Protect confidentiality and support follow-up without revealing identity;
Be supported by a register and dashboard that tracks all disclosures;
Link to serious incident management procedures;
Trigger alerts for high-risk disclosures;
Include training modules for staff and leadership.
Stopline are aligned with the Aged Care Act changes. A person can remain anonymous AND make a report through the platform.
Non-compliance risks: Providers that fail to implement effective systems risk sanctions, deregistration, and reputational damage.
3. Aligning with Broader Governance Obligations
Many aged care providers also fall under the Corporations Act 2001, especially those that are registered companies. The Treasury Laws Amendment (Enhancing Whistleblower Protections) Act 2019 introduced new standards for internal disclosure handling in corporate settings.
Providers should ensure their whistleblower procedures comply with both Acts, particularly regarding protection of the discloser, anonymity, governance reporting, and response protocols.
4. Why Providers Choose Stopline
For over 24 years, Stopline has been Australia’s most experienced independent whistleblower service. Trusted by over 600 organisations nationally, including numerous aged care providers, our service is not a generic call centre—we are a specialist team trained in misconduct reporting, governance, risk, and compliance.
Why Stopline stands apart:
Unmatched experience: Established in 2001, we are Australia’s longest-serving whistleblower service provider. Stopline is an Australian owned business.
Tailored service delivery: We provide dedicated portals, client branding, and response handling aligned to your values and policies.
Trusted by industry: Our client base continues to grow, and we remain the first choice for public, private, disability services and not-for-profit aged care providers (to name a few).
Integrated platform (Make a Report): Our purpose-built reporting solution enables secure disclosures, case tracking, and regulatory alignment.
Comprehensive support: We also offer reporting tools, staff and board-level training, and resources to help you embed a speak-up culture across your organisation.
In the face of increased regulatory scrutiny, the choice of your whistleblower and reporting provider matters. With Stopline and Make a Report, you gain not only compliance—but confidence.
5. Our Advice for Providers – From Andrew McLeish, Managing Director
At Stopline, we believe that compliance goes beyond ticking a box—it’s about creating safe, accountable organisations.
We highly recommend:
Aligning your organisation’s whistleblower and incident reporting policies with both aged care and corporate legislation;
Centralising all disclosures through a single secure reporting platform - Make a Report;
Delivering staff and board-level training to build confidence and reporting literacy across all levels.
Need Help Meeting Your Obligations?
If you would like to see how our platform can help you comply with the Aged Care Act 2024 and beyond, please contact us Andrew 0487333099 or send an email to andrewmcleish@stopline.com.au to learn more.
Please note this is not legal advice and should not be taken as such. If you are needing legal advice about the changes in the Aged Care Act and the rights and obligations under the Act, please seek your own legal advice. This article has been written for information purposes only.
Resources
The Australian Parliament passed the Aged Care Act 2024 as the new law for government-funded aged care in Australia on 25 November 2024. The new Act will start from 1 July 2025 and aligns with the launch of the new Support at Home program.
For more information, read the: