Aged care is big business, with handsome profits for some.
The Federal Government has introduced major reforms in the nursing home industry in the last few years, including greater contributions from residents. American-based corporations are moving into Australia to capitalise on a growth industry protected by an assured flow of Government funds. The scandal over the use of kerosene baths to treat scabies at the Riverside Nursing Home in Melbourne has cast a pall over the industry, and raised serious questions about the Federal Government's reforms, and the performance of the Minister for Aged Care, Mrs Bishop. The latest controversy is symptomatic of a raft of official complaints about the Riverside Home dating back to January last year. But the new complaints and inspection system, introduced in October 1997, did not work in this case.