Converging Paths: How Aged Care and Disability Services Are Becoming More Alike

Australia’s Aged Care and Disability sectors have historically operated on parallel tracks — serving different cohorts, governed by different regulations, and shaped by different funding models. But in recent years, these distinctions have blurred. Today, the similarities between these two sectors are not only striking but also increasingly consequential for service providers, workers, and policymakers alike.

A Funding Model Shift: The Rise of Individualised Care

The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), introduced in 2013, transformed the Disability sector by giving participants choice and control over how their support funding is spent. A similar move occurred in Aged Care with the introduction of Consumer-Directed Care (CDC) for Home Care Packages. Both systems aim to personalise care, empower consumers, and promote market-based delivery.

This shift has redefined the relationship between clients and providers — transforming passive recipients into active purchasers, and reframing providers as competitors in a more fragmented, retail-like ecosystem.

Shared Challenges: Workforce, Margins, and Complexity

While this shift has brought greater autonomy for individuals, it’s also introduced complex challenges that mirror each other across both sectors:

• Sustainability and Profitability: Price caps, rising wages, and administrative overhead are making it difficult to keep residential models afloat. 
• Workforce Pressures: Critical shortages of skilled support workers, compounded by high turnover and burnout. 
• Decentralised Delivery: In-home care brings flexibility but complicates scheduling, coordination, and compliance.

A Collective Shift Toward In-Home Care

The preference is clear: older Australians and people with disabilities overwhelmingly want to remain in their homes. Providers, facing operational and economic pressures, are responding in kind — ramping up community-based and home-delivered care models that align better with both client expectations and financial realities.

A Future of Convergence

While Aged Care and Disability will always have distinct elements — such as eligibility criteria, age groups, and regulatory bodies — the convergence in funding models, service delivery, and economic pressures is undeniable.

So, what does this mean for the future?

• Policy alignment may increase, with government bodies looking to streamline overlaps, reduce inefficiencies, and foster better workforce planning across sectors. 
• Workforce pathways could open up, enabling more seamless movement and upskilling opportunities for support workers across both sectors. 
• Innovative service models will likely emerge that cater to mixed cohorts (such as older people with disabilities), with more flexible, scalable in-home care options. 

• Providers who can diversify across sectors, streamline compliance, and deliver responsive, high-quality care in the home will be best positioned for sustainability. 

Conclusion

Australia’s Aged Care and Disability sectors are no longer running on parallel tracks — they’re on a collision course toward integration. While this brings challenges, it also presents a rare opportunity to reimagine how we deliver care with dignity, flexibility, and financial viability.

As this convergence accelerates, the need for thoughtful leadership, cross-sector collaboration, and human-centred innovation will only grow.

Hiring or Expanding Your Team in Aged Care or Disability Services?

We are actively working with providers across both sectors who are adapting to these changes and need the right talent to do it. Whether you’re growing your in-home services team, struggling with retention, or exploring how to build a more cross-functional workforce — we’d love to help.