The agency overseeing the financial health of aged care in Australia has concerns that the sector is not financially viable or sustainable, a Senate committee has heard. Mike Callaghan, the head of the Aged Care Financing Authority, told Senate estimates on Wednesday that the financial performance of the aged care sector, and particularly nursing homes, remains a “significant concern” to the agency. The authority’s annual report stated that a “sizeable proportion” of residential care providers were making a loss and a number of smaller providers were seeking to leave the sector. Many others were “concerned about their ongoing viability if current financial trends are maintained”. ‘Scratching the surface’: the aged care stories that go untold may be the worst Read more In 2017‑18, 44% of residential care providers reported a loss, compared with 32% in 2016-17. Under questioning from Labor senator Murray Watt, Callaghan said the financial difficulties facing […]