Super funds reinforce importance of advice in aged care funding
Financial advisers have gained the backing of a key section of the superannuation industry with respect to their involvement in retirement advice, including aged care funding.
The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia has used a submission to the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety to point to the real necessity for financial advice and to reference research undertaken in 2015 which exemplified that need.
“There is an increasing expectation that financial advisers should be able to provide advice about all aspects of retirement, including private funding requirements for aged care,” the submission said.
It said the 2015 paper had indicated that two questions that needed to be considered were:
- How can the program of increasing adviser standards incorporate aged-care advice? What else needs to be done to drive trusted advice in this space and increase levels of understanding in the community?
- How can access to aged-care advice be improved? What is the role of superannuation funds in this equation?
“Many individuals contemplating entry into residential aged care, together with their families, are faced by difficult financial decisions. While greater flexibility is now available in regard to the balance between accommodation deposits and ongoing charges, this does make for greater complexity and the need to consider alternative options,” the submission said.
“There is also interplay between the holding of various financial assets and the means tests for both the Age Pension and aged care ongoing costs. Some individuals also will have taxation and estate planning issues that they need to address.
“All of this highlights the need for any changes to aged care financing to support effective decision making by individuals. This might in some cases require the provision of financial and other advice and guidance to the individuals concerned. How such advice and guidance is provided is important for its quality and cost,” the ASFA submission said.
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