Working together under Support at Home FAQs

Q: Do Support at Home regulatory requirements apply to allied health professionals who do not attend the homes of patients?

A: Yes. Under Support at Home, the same legislation, service codes and compliance requirements apply regardless of whether services are delivered in the client's home, in a clinic or via telehealth.

Clinical services (including physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech pathology and dietetics) remain fully funded by the government in all these settings.

Allied health providers delivering offsite services are still required to provide appropriate evidence of service delivery under Five Good Friends and Support at Home requirements. This includes:

• service date and duration;

• proof of attendance (check-in and check-out where applicable);

• treatment or progress notes; and

• clinical reports where requested or required as part of the referral or ongoing care management.

Services must align with the member's care plan and approved purchase order.

Invoices must reference the correct purchase order number, include the provider ABN and align to the authorised service type, duration, date of service and agreed pricing as provided on the purchase order. Where invoices or supporting evidence do not align to the purchase order, they may move into a manual review queue and payment timeframes may be extended.

Q: Will providing invoices and treatment notes remain integrated/streamlined (via email etc.) or will a third-party portal be expected?

A: Connected Care is being progressively rolled out as part of Five Good Friends' broader approach to creating more connected and transparent ways of working with providers under Support at Home.

In the first stage, Connected Care will mainly support provider submission of checkout notes, service evidence and selected service updates to improve visibility of delivered supports.

At this stage:

• invoicing will remain through existing AP Agreement processes

• providers should continue sending reports through the current agreed channels

• Connected Care will initially focus on proof of delivery and service visibility.

Over time, Five Good Friends hopes to work more closely with providers to create a more integrated experience across referrals, reporting, invoicing and communication workflows. Connected Care is intended to help support improved provider coordination, stronger purchase order and invoice alignment, faster issue resolution, and better visibility of member supports and outcomes.

Q: In order to integrate existing systems together, do we get any APIs to integrate or only through a dashboard?

A: You can have either or both. The Connected Care platform is API-based, so for providers who are more technically set up, Five Good Friends can work with you on how the APIs send and receive data — including webhooks. For those who prefer a simpler approach, everything can be managed through the supplier portal dashboard: receiving orders, entering them into your own system and confirming delivery or a csv upload.

Lookout (the software platform underpinning Connected Care) is also looking to develop deeper partnerships with providers who have the capability to use the API directly. If this is of interest, please let our team know. There is no cost to associate providers to access the portal or the API at this stage.

Q: In order to integrate existing systems together, do we get any APIs to integrate or only through a dashboard?

A: You can have either or both. The platform is API-based, so for providers who are more technically set up, Five Good Friends can work with you on how the APIs send and receive data — including webhooks.

For those who prefer a simpler approach, everything can be managed through the supplier portal dashboard. Lookout is also looking to develop deeper partnerships with providers who have the capability to use the API directly. If this is of interest, please let our team know.

Q: Will there be a fee/cost to use the Connected Care program, or to have multiple staff registered to use the program?

A: There is no cost to use the Connected Care program at this stage. Multiple staff within your organisation can use the portal at no additional charge. The registered provider (Five Good Friends) covers the platform costs on our end.

Q: Can "did not attend" appointments still be billed to Support at Home funding if the client doesn't give 24 hours' notice?

A: Five Good Friends has a standard cancellation approach designed to align with Support at Home requirements, the Aged Care Act and the Statement of Rights.

Associated providers may have their own operational cancellation preferences or policies. However, providers cannot independently apply separate cancellation arrangements directly with Members outside of the Five Good Friends agreement and referral process.

Where a provider requires specific cancellation conditions (for example, longer notice periods for specialist services), these must be discussed,agreed, and approved in writing by Five Good Friends.

Any approved arrangements must be:

• reasonable and proportionate

• clearly communicated to the Member

• aligned to the Member's approved supports and purchase order

• consistent with Five Good Friends policies and consumer rights obligations.

Under Support at Home, there is increasing focus on transparency, fairness and ensuring older people understand any potential charges relating to missed or cancelled services. Providers should not directly invoice Members for cancellations or did-not-attend appointments unless this has been approved through Five Good Friends processes as agreed in your contract. Invoicing Members directly would be in breach of your contract.

Q: When do clients get told the cost of their co-contribution for assistive technology? We had a client receive their AT but had not been told the contributions.

A: Under Support at Home, assistive technology and home modifications fall under the Independence category and may require a means-tested client contribution.

Services Australia determines the client's contribution rate during the support planning process and Members are generally notified of this directly by Services Australia.

Five Good Friends will inform the Member of the expected co-contribution before placing an order. If you become aware that a Member has received AT without being informed of their contribution obligations, please contact our care team so we can follow this up directly with the Member and ensure they have the right information.

Q: If not covered in the webinar — how is the 5% out-of-pocket co-contribution paid? To the contractor or to Five Good Friends?

A: Under Support at Home, Member co-contributions are paid to the registered provider (Five Good Friends), not directly to the associated provider or contractor.

Five Good Friends remains responsible for managing the Member's care needs, funding, budget, claiming and overall program accountability under aged care legislation. Associated providers continue invoicing Five Good Friends in line with the agreed purchase order and AP agreement arrangements.

Q: Just to confirm — client contributions will be removed from October 1st for clinical supports, meaning if a physio session is charged at $80 that is the rate paid with no added fee charged to the client?

A: Under Support at Home, clinical services (including physiotherapy) already attract no client contribution — so if a physio session is charged at $80, the client currently pays no co-payment on top of that amount, and the full $80 is drawn from their quarterly budget.

What is changing from 1 October 2026 is that personal care services will also have client contributions removed. This is a positive change for members who are currently required to make a means-tested contribution toward personal care. The removal of contributions on personal care does not increase a member's total quarterly budget — it simply means they are no longer paying a percentage of that cost out of pocket.

Q: For a product or service that requires an OT to prescribe — who decides on the provider, Five Good Friends or the OT?

A: Five Good Friends remains accountable for procurement and must ensure that purchases align with program rules and budget. The prescribing clinician (for example, an OT) provides a recommendation based on the Member's needs and may suggest preferred suppliers. Five Good Friends will review the prescription, assess funding, obtain Member consent and issue a purchase order. In some cases, Five Good Friends may have existing verified or preferred suppliers. Providers should not purchase any assistive technology without Five Good Friends' written approval.

Q: What are the current wait times for approvals of AT and home modification funding under the new scheme?

A: Wait times for reassessment and approval of additional supports — including assistive technology and home modifications — are currently running at around four months. This reflects broader capacity pressures across the assessment system since Support at Home commenced.

If you are working with a Member and anticipate they will need additional supports or AT, please communicate this to our care team as early as possible by calling 1300 953 723. The sooner we have that clinical information, the sooner we can initiate a reassessment and plan for the relevant funding in an upcoming quarter.

Q: Do these requirements blur the lines between a contractor and an employee, creating a sham contracting arrangement?

A: No. The Support at Home framework does not change employment law. Associated providers are independent businesses or sole traders engaged under a commercial agreement. Five Good Friends sets quality and compliance expectations because it remains legally accountable for services delivered under its registration. This level of oversight does not create an employment relationship. Using a shared portal or system to coordinate service delivery does not affect the nature of the contractual arrangement between Five Good Friends and its associated providers.

Q: What will be the final date for invoices to be submitted in June so they will be paid by end of financial year?

A: Five Good Friends typically processes compliant invoices within 30 days in line with the AP Agreement. To support timely payment before the end of the June quarter, invoices must align to the approved purchase order and include the correct purchase order number, provider ABN, service details and supporting evidence where required.

Invoices that do not align with the purchase order, contain missing information, or require clarification, may move into a manual review queue, which can result in longer processing timeframes. To avoid delays, providers should ensure invoices are accurate, complete and submitted as promptly as possible following service delivery — and well before the end of June.

Please contact your Five Good Friends relationship contact directly if you need confirmation of specific cutoff dates for the June quarter.

Q: Could purchase orders be explained? They can sometimes be confusing for staff to look at.

A: A purchase order (PO) is a formal document Five Good Friends issues to an associate provider to authorise the delivery of a specific service for one of our members. Think of it as our way of saying "yes, please deliver this service — we have the budget approved." Each PO will include the member's name, the service type, the number of units or sessions authorised, the agreed rate, the quarter the service should be delivered within, and a unique PO number.

That PO number is important — please reference it on your invoice so we can match it quickly on our end. You should not deliver services beyond what is on the PO without prior approval, as additional services may not be claimable from the member's budget. If you think more sessions are needed, please contact our care team as early as possible so we can assess whether there is budget available.

Q: How long before everyone will be on Support at Home packages? What other services will be provided — for example, spring cleans?

A: All Home Care Package and Short-Term Restorative Care participants transitioned into Support at Home from 1 November 2025. The Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP) is expected to transition at a later stage.

Support at Home will continue to fund a broad range of services that support people to remain safe, well and independent at home. However, there is a stronger focus on services that are reasonable, necessary and aligned to assessed goals, reablement and independence outcomes.

At this stage, one-off spring cleans or deep cleans are not expected to be a standard ongoing Support at Home service offering in the same way they may have been historically. Domestic assistance may still include some higher-level cleaning activities where clinically appropriate, linked to safety or wellbeing outcomes, and approved as part of the member's assessed support needs and available budget. We recommend reviewing the Support at Home services list on the Department of Health website for a full overview of what is funded.

Q: Is there clear guidance on what cleaning services are approved under Support at Home?

A: Cleaning falls under the Everyday Living category of Support at Home. The Department of Health publishes a Support at Home Service List (available on health.gov.au), which is the most authoritative source. The frequency and hours of cleaning support depend on the member's Support at Home classification level.

Approved cleaning services generally include:

• general house cleaning — vacuuming, mopping, dusting, sweeping

• kitchen cleaning — wiping benches, washing dishes, emptying bins

• bathroom cleaning — scrubbing shower, cleaning toilet, mopping floors

• bedroom and living areas — changing bed sheets, making the bed, general tidying

• laundry — washing, folding, ironing and putting away clothes

• taking out rubbish and watering plants

• additional tasks on request such as cleaning the fridge or pantry, internal windows, non-caustic oven cleaning, and sweeping the deck or patio.

All cleaning services must be approved as part of the member's assessed support needs and available budget and in line with the members care plan.

Q: Funding quarters — how does this align with referrals and order requests?

A: Support at Home funding is allocated in fixed calendar quarters: January to March, April to June, July to September, and October to December. Unlike the previous model where funding accumulated over longer periods, Support at Home funding is largely ‘use-it-or-lose-it' within each quarter, with only limited rollover available.

This means it is increasingly important that approved services are delivered, evidenced and invoiced within the relevant funding period where possible. Five Good Friends is focused on helping members utilise their approved supports appropriately and reducing the risk of members losing access to funding because services, reports or invoices are delayed.

For associated providers, the key practical implication is to be mindful of quarter-end dates when scheduling services. If you have a purchase order for the current quarter, please aim to deliver and invoice within that quarter. If you anticipate needing additional sessions in the next quarter, please communicate this to our care team by the end of the second month of the current quarter so we can allow for it in the next quarter's budget.

Q: Clarity around processes — in particular when a participant wishes to arrange further sessions and acquire a new purchase order number.

A: Where ongoing or additional services are recommended, providers should communicate this to Five Good Friends through existing operational and clinical pathways as early as possible — ideally by the end of the second month of the current quarter, so that additional sessions can be planned and budgeted for in the following quarter.

In most cases, further sessions or extensions to services will require review against the member's approved supports and goals, available budget, clinical appropriateness and current purchase order arrangements. A new purchase order will be required before further sessions are delivered. Providers should not continue delivering services outside the approved purchase order without written confirmation from Five Good Friends.

If you are unsure whether a current purchase order covers additional sessions, please check with our care team by calling 1300 953 723 before proceeding.

Q: How will we as an associate provider know when the quarter finishes to ensure we don't agree to move a service outside of the quarter, impacting payments?

A: Support at Home uses fixed calendar quarters that apply to all members: January to March, April to June, July to September, and October to December. The current quarter ends 30 June. Any services authorised for this quarter should be delivered before that date — it is a use-it-or-lose-it model and unused funding cannot be carried over. Please ensure your teams are aware of these quarter-end dates when scheduling services, and contact our care team as early as possible if you anticipate any issues delivering within a quarter.

Q: Are the quarterly sessions Jan–March etc., or independent to each member like NDIS where plans roll out randomly?

A: Unlike the NDIS, Support at Home uses fixed calendar quarters that apply to all members — they are not tied to individual plan anniversaries. The quarters are: January to March, April to June, July to September, and October to December. All members are on the same cycle.

Q: Does the initial assessment come out of the quarterly budget or the ATHM budget? Does this depend on whether it is a general assessment or a specific single-issue assessment?

A: If a member is funded for Allied Health and Therapy Management (ATHM), assessments would generally come from that ATHM allocation. Our care partners will work with you to determine which funding type is most appropriate for a given assessment, depending on the member's funding profile and the nature of the assessment. We would encourage you to check in with our care management team before delivering an initial assessment so we can confirm the right funding source and ensure a purchase order is in place.

Q: What happens if there is a budget agreed on but the client needs a treatment that will exceed the budget?

A: Please contact our care management team as soon as you become aware that a client's needs are likely to exceed the agreed budget. Do not deliver services beyond the authorised PO without approval, as we cannot guarantee those additional services will be claimable.

When you notify us early, we have options — we may be able to reallocate funds from another part of the client's budget within the current quarter, or plan for additional sessions in the following quarter's budget. If the client's needs have significantly changed, we may also be able to initiate a support needs reassessment, though reassessments are currently taking up to four months. The key is early communication — the closer we are to the end of a quarter, the fewer options we have.

Q: What do we need to know about capped fees? Are there changes to who sets the price for services such as physiotherapy under Support at Home? Do we need to do anything because price caps have been delayed?

A: Support at Home is moving toward a more nationally consistent pricing approach across aged care, similar to the NDIS price cap model. However, formal price caps have been delayed by 12 months — rather than commencing on 1 July this year, they are now expected to take effect on 1 July next year.

The primary reason for the delay is that the government does not yet have sufficient data to set caps accurately. This makes it important that invoices submitted to Five Good Friends are detailed and accurate — including the purchase order number, the specific unit of service delivered (for example, a 30-minute consult should be reflected as 0.5 of an hour), and the agreed rate. Without this detail, the government's pricing data is incomplete, which risks poorly calibrated caps in the future.

In the meantime, providers should continue operating as normal under existing agreed pricing arrangements. No immediate action is required as a result of the delay. Five Good Friends will continue communicating with providers as further guidance on price caps becomes available.

Q: Who reads our update reports and what details should they include? How can physiotherapists coordinate with the care team to achieve the best outcomes? How do integrated allied health providers contribute to functional outcomes?

A: Client reports are reviewed by the member's care partner and Five Good Friends' clinical governance team to monitor progress, manage risks and meet regulatory requirements. Reports should be concise, objective and focused on the member's goals, interventions provided, outcomes achieved and any changes in condition or risk.

Under Support at Home, there is increasing focus on connected care, continuity of care and stronger visibility of member outcomes across the broader care network. Connected Care is intended to progressively support more collaborative ways of working over time, including checkout notes and service evidence, observations and reporting, shared operational visibility, and more connected care coordination workflows.

We see allied health providers playing an important role in supporting preventative, restorative and reablement-focused outcomes — through early intervention, communication of risks or changes, and practical recommendations that support member independence over time. If you have observations or clinical concerns about a member that are time-sensitive, please contact our care team directly rather than waiting for a scheduled report.

Q: Would a stat dec be sufficient to cover the evidence required for invoicing? Our invoices are pulled from our organisational records so a trail is there, just not from your end.

A: We are not able to accept a statutory declaration as proof of delivery. The most straightforward options are confirming delivery through the soon to be released Connected Care portal (check-in/check-out or batch CSV upload) alongside a detailed invoice referencing the PO number, date, duration and service type. We understand every organisation operates differently and we are happy to work with you on the best approach. Further guidance will be included in the Associate Provider Handbook due mid-June.

Q: What proof of delivery would be required from the client (e.g. signature)? As a gardener, the client is not necessarily home at the time of service.

A: A client signature is not mandatory, particularly for services where the client is not present — such as gardening. Proof of delivery needs to demonstrate that the service was delivered, not necessarily that the client witnessed it.

Acceptable evidence can include a check-in/check-out via the Connected Care portal (with GPS timestamp), photos taken at the property before and after the service, notes recorded at the time of service including what was done and the duration, or a combination of these. The soon to be released Connected Care portal worker link is well-suited to this scenario — your staff member can check in on arrival, check out on completion and must add a brief note, creating a timestamped record on our end.

Q: How can we tell Five Good Friends about our referral capacity and waiting times? Who should we approach for new clients in areas like Adelaide or Brisbane? How do we reach care partners to teach them about our services, and what can we do to receive more referrals?

A: The best way to increase your visibility and referrals from Five Good Friends is through Connected Care. As the platform rolls out, you will be able to complete a supplier profile that includes the services you offer, your rates, and the service areas and postcodes you cover. When a care manager searches for a provider — for example, a physiotherapist in Adelaide — providers with complete profiles and confirmed availability in that area will appear in the results. This gives our team much greater confidence to send a referral directly to you.

Service area and availability functionality is expected to be available later this year. In the meantime, if you would like to update us on your capacity, waiting times or service coverage, please reach out to our orders team at Five Good Friends directly via email [email protected].

Five Good Friends is also planning shared meetups and collaborative sessions with our associate provider network over time — these will be another opportunity to connect with care partners and build relationships with our team. We will share details of these as they are scheduled.

Clients retain full choice and control over their providers under the Aged Care Act 2024, so if a member requests a specific provider, we will work to facilitate that.

Q: Is there a pathway for providers to introduce our services to the wider care partner team? Will customers still have full choice and control over their providers, or will referrals mainly stay within preferred provider networks?

A: Clients absolutely retain full choice and control over their providers — this is a right enshrined in the Aged Care Act 2024 and the Aged Care Quality Standards, and Five Good Friends is committed to upholding it. We cannot and do not restrict clients to a preferred provider network against their wishes.

The best pathway to increase your visibility to our care team is to complete your Connected Care supplier profile — including your services, rates and service areas. When a care manager searches for providers in your area, complete profiles come up with confirmed availability and pricing, giving our team the confidence to send referrals directly to you. We are also planning shared meetups and collaborative sessions with our associate provider network over time.

Q: Will the new Connected Care make it easier to receive referrals for services like podiatry?

A: Yes. Once Connected Care is rolled out, completing your supplier profile — including your services, rates and service areas — means that when one of our care managers searches for a podiatrist in a particular area, your profile will appear with confirmed availability and pricing. This gives our team much greater confidence to send a referral directly to you rather than relying on manual searches or word of mouth. We will notify you when your invitation to set up your profile is ready.

Q: Will the "service areas" also allow for diagnostic groups? (e.g. only working with specific conditions such as MND or MS)

A: Great question and something we are considering as we develop how we ingest and search this information in our system. We will look at how best to incorporate specialisation by condition or diagnostic group into supplier profiles. Watch this space and feel free to share any specific suggestions with our team.

Q: Regarding delivery of clinical supports — if these are not done through home visits but in clinic, would there still be the expectation to confirm service delivery through the portal? Would enquiries/expressions of interest also come through the portal?

A: Yes — the same legislative requirements around proof of delivery apply regardless of whether a service is delivered in the home or at a clinic. As a registered provider under the Aged Care Act 2024, Five Good Friends must maintain evidence that services were delivered in all settings. The Connected Care portal's check-in/check-out functionality can be used for in-clinic appointments — your clinician simply uses the link when the client arrives and again when the session ends.

As for enquiries and expressions of interest — at this stage these will continue to come through existing channels (email or phone). Over time, the portal will support two-way messaging with our care teams. We will keep you updated as that functionality is rolled out.

Q: Will the check-in and check-out be available for in-clinic appointments or just for home visits?

A: The check-in/check-out via the Connected Care portal link is not restricted to home visits — it can be used for in-clinic appointments as well. The link can be shared with your clinician, who checks in when the client's appointment begins and checks out when it ends, regardless of location. This provides Five Good Friends with the proof of delivery evidence required under the Aged Care Act 2024 and is required for Associated Providers to supply as you are being paid by Support at Home funding.

Q: Concerns regarding increasing administrative requirements on associate providers — managing multiple compliance systems, portals and reporting requirements without additional compensation, taking clinicians away from direct client care.

A: This is a very fair and important concern, and one we take seriously. Our goal with Connected Care is specifically to reduce the administrative burden over time — by replacing manual emails and phone calls with a streamlined portal, and eventually API-to-API integration for those with the technical capability. The check-in/check-out is designed to take seconds, not minutes.

We recognise that in the short term there is a transition cost, and we are not asking you to absorb that silently. We are very open to feedback on where the friction is greatest and will use that to shape how the system develops. Please raise any specific issues with us. The Associate Provider Handbook coming in June will clearly distinguish what is a legislative requirement versus what is a request from us, so you can make informed decisions about your participation.

Q: Would Five Good Friends consider partnering with associate providers on data security, given the sensitivity of the information being shared?

A: Data security is something we take seriously and we have measures in place to help protect our members' information. As part of our associate provider renewal process, Five Good Friends requires all associate providers to hold cybersecurity insurance. This is one of the ways we are working to ensure that member data is protected across our entire care network.

Any client information shared through the Connected Care portal is also subject to the Privacy Act 1988 and the Aged Care Act 2024 requirements around information management. If you have questions about our data security requirements or your renewal obligations, please contact our team directly.