Support at Home Post-Go-Live Checklist for Home Care Providers

What Providers Should Be Focusing On Now

The Support at Home (SaH) Program officially commenced on 1 November 2025, marking one of the most significant shifts in Australia’s home care funding, compliance and service delivery landscape.

For most providers, ‘go-live’ was only the beginning.

Now comes the critical phase: stabilising operations, validating data, refining workflows, and ensuring ongoing compliance under the new rules.

To support providers through this transition, we’ve created a post-go-live operational checklist, drawing on key actions and monitoring requirements outlined in the October 2025 Support at Home Reform Update.

This is what your organisation should be doing right now.

1. Strengthen Data Integrity and Compliance Foundations

Accurate data underpins every aspect of the new Support at Home model, from pricing transparency to quarterly budgets, care management, claiming, and Assistive Technology and Home Modifications (AT-HM) accurate expenditure.

Post-Go-Live Integrity Checks

Ensure that the following items are completed and verified:

– All Home Care Package (HCP) clients are now Transitioned HCP clients (the HCP approval date matters):

• • “No worse off” eligibility
  • Grandfathering HCP funds for use

– Documentation of mandatory information provided to each client:

• • Statement of Rights
  • Code of Conduct
  • Complaints Policy
  • New Pricing
  • New care and service plan
  • Quarterly SaH budgets
  • SaH agreement in place with participants

– Moving from Contractors to Associated Providers

– Appropriate evidence for claiming

2. Monitor Budgets, Claiming and Financial Performance

The first months of Support at Home will be financially volatile for many providers. Detailed monitoring and early intervention are essential.

Key Post-Go-Live Finance Tasks

– Update service locations, pricing, availabilities, outlet names and schedules in My Aged Care and the Aged Care Provider Portal (ACPP)

– Ensure systems are configured for the new Quarterly Financial Report (QFR) and Aged Care Financial Report (ACFR) data requirements.

– Complete final HCP claiming by 30 November 2025, including reporting provider-held unspent funds.

– From 1 December 2025, commence Support at Home claiming under the new rules.

– Establish claiming reconciliation processes and confirm debtor management workflows.

– Finalise revised financial reporting and KPIs for leadership and board oversight.

– Conduct monthly market monitoring on pricing.

– Prepare client communication packages:

• • Participant-portion unspent fund decisions (due by 10 January 2026)
  • New monthly Support at Home statement (plain language guidance)
  • Hardship support information, where applicable

– Finalise self-managed care agreement templates.

3. Ensure Workforce Readiness and SaH-Aligned Practice

Frontline staff, care partners and schedulers are key to seamless SaH delivery. Ensuring they understand the new model is essential.

Workforce Priorities

– Update orientation and induction checklists for SaH requirements (including Associate Providers).

– Provide role-specific SaH training on the Business Rules, budgets, care management , and short-term pathways.

– Confirm care management KPIs:

• • Minimum 15 minutes per client per month of directly claimable care management
  • Tracking claimable vs non-claimable time

– Finalise position descriptions, responsibilities, and escalation pathways.

– Conduct scheduled cross-departmental check-ins:

• • Finance
  • Client services
  • Care management
  • Scheduling
  • Service delivery teams
    

4. Update Processes for Short-Term Pathways and Assistive Technology and Home Modification (AT-HM)

Short-term pathways are a major operational shift in Support at Home.

Short-Term Pathway Actions

– Finalise wellness and reablement operational plans.

– Ensure restorative and end-of-life care partners are sourced where needed.

– Identify clients who may benefit and lodge Support Plan Reviews.

– Establish alerts for end dates of:

• • AT-HM pathways
    
  • Restorative pathways
  • End-of-life pathways
    
    

AT-HM Specific Tasks

– Understand the pathway of unspent funds and manage appropriately.

– Understand and educate staff on wrap- around services and when to claim.

– Implement monthly data submission processes (Dec 2025 – Feb 2026).

– Provide prescribing clinicians with AT-HM guidance templates and examples.

5. Refine Technology Systems, Workflows and Reporting

Your care management system (CMS) now plays an even bigger role in operational reliability and compliance.

System Priorities

– Understand the process from planning, implementing and claiming within your CMS. Areas to consider:

• • Quarterly budgets
  • Care management budgets
  • Claiming changes
  • Restorative/EoL functionality

– Document workarounds when your processes are developing —and train staff on them.

– Review and adjust workflows and checklists to align with the SaH operating model.

– Build or refine reports and dashboards that provide:

• • Budget monitoring (ongoing and short-term)
  • Care partner utilisation visibility
  • Alerts for pathway end dates
  • Care management pool monitoring
    

6. Strengthen Policies, Procedures and Governance

With the new Aged Care Act now in force (1 November 2025), governance is under heightened scrutiny.

Post-Go-Live Governance Tasks

– Update all policies and procedures to reflect:

• • Support at Home
  • The new Aged Care Act 2024
  • Strengthened Aged Care Quality Standards
    

– Finalise documentation schedules for each policy type.

– Digitise workflows and checklists wherever possible to reduce manual error.

– Establish a post-go-live project meeting cadence to:

• • Track issues
  • Develop improvements
  • Monitor SaH performance
    
    

7. Refresh Client Communication and Onboarding Materials

Your onboarding experience must now reflect new legislative requirements, new pricing structures, and Support at Home pathway planning.

Client Communication Essentials

– Update all new client onboarding forms, checklists, and information kits.

– Provide printed SaH materials for new enquiries.

– Finalise all consultations with clients transitioning from HCP to SaH, ensuring:

• • New agreements are explained
  • Mandatory information is documented
  • Clients understand their contributions rates
    
    

8. Ongoing Performance Monitoring

Post-go-live is not a one-off event, it’s an ongoing process.

What You Should Monitor Monthly

– Unspent fund balances for each client

– Claimable vs non-claimable care management minutes

– Care partner utilisation against targets

– Industry published rates for each service

– Travel time/cost validity

– Overhead allocations

– Associate Provider rates vs published rates

Strong internal monitoring now will reduce risk, prevent compliance gaps, and prepare you for upcoming audits.

Final Thoughts

Support at Home is a significant reform, and the first few months will determine how stable and compliant your service remains for the long term.

By following this checklist, home care providers can confidently navigate post-go-live adjustments, address emerging risks early, and ensure continuity of high-quality, person-centred care.

Ready to streamline your home care operations?

Built to meet Support at Home and compliance requirements, OneTouch brings everything together in a single, easy-to-use platform designed to keep your team aligned, families informed, and your clients supported.  Book a demo today to see how OneTouch can help your organisation save time, reduce admin, and strengthen care outcomes.