The aged care royal commissioners were notably split on a number of key issues, but on one principle they were united. Older Australians should not be required to contribute to their cost of care, nor should care be means tested.
Instead, commissioner Tony Pagone wrote, every Australian should “contribute towards the financing of the aged care system through their working life” through a Medicare-style levy, therefore guaranteeing each of us the right to aged care when we eventually need it. The commissioners diverged on the nature of the levy, but agreed on the principle that a visible levy would, as commissioner Lynelle Briggs argued, “help taxpayers hold the government to account as it implements reforms”.
