Aged Care Complaints Scheme review rights

If you have lodged a complaint with the Scheme and are not happy with the final decision, you may request that we review our decision. Approved providers involved in a complaint can also request a review. Reviews are important, and help us to address any concerns you may have about our work.

Ongoing feedback also helps us to improve how the Scheme works. If you are not satisfied at any stage of a complaint, please raise this directly with us so we can improve our processes to achieve good outcomes.

Once a complaint is finalized, you will usually have review rights if you are not satisfied with the outcome. However, review rights are not available to people in certain circumstances. We cannot review a final decision if:

• you complain anonymously, because we are unable to contact you
• your complaint is resolved using early resolution
• the resolution process is ended as a result of compliance action.

We can tell you more about this when you contact us.

Requesting a review of a final decision

A request for review can only be lodged after a complaint process has been finalised and must be done within 28 days of receiving our decision letter. Your request must state the reasons why you are asking us to reconsider the decision.

You can request a review by contacting the Scheme by telephone or in writing.

What we do with your request

When you request a review we will either undertake a new resolution process or confirm the original decision. We will tell you our decision within 28 days of receiving your application. If we undertake a new resolution process, we will notify both parties to the complaint and work with them throughout the new resolution process.

If you are still not satisfied with our revised decision we are not permitted to conduct another review. You can lodge a review with the Aged Care Commissioner.

Seeking a review with the Aged Care Commissioner

If you are not satisfied with our decision, you can ask the Aged Care Commissioner (the Commissioner) to conduct an independent review. Your request must be made within 28 days of receiving our decision letter and you must state the reasons why you are seeking a review by the Commissioner.

If you are generally unhappy with the Scheme’s decision but we undertook a fair resolution process, the Commissioner may choose not to conduct a review. The Commissioner will let you know within 14 days whether your request will be examined. The Commissioner has 60 days to conduct the review and make recommendations to us based on these examinations.

Following a review by the Commissioner, if we conduct a second resolution process there are no further rights to seek review by either the Commissioner or us. There is one exception to this; the approved provider may seek another review if we issue them Directions that were not part of the original complaint outcome.

You can also ask the Commissioner to look at our complaints process. If you have a concern about our process, you must raise it with the Commissioner within 12 months. A review of our complaints process cannot re-open or change the outcome of your complaint.

To find out more about Commissioner reviews you can contact the Commissioner by:

• Calling 1800 500 294
• Going to agedcarecommissioner.net.au
• Emailing complaints@agedcarecommissioner.net.au

For more information about review rights, you can view, download and order our review rights fact sheet from our online order form. If you are still unsure about your review rights call us on 1800 550 552 and ask to speak to the complaints manager in your state or territory. You may also leave a question or comment below.