What is the Residential Aged Care COVID-19 Employee Vaccination Support Grant?
The Residential Aged Care COVID-19 Employee Vaccination Support Grant is a program to support the Residential Aged Care Sector (the Sector) in ensuring that all staff within a residential aged care facility are able to receive the COVID-19 vaccine whilst minimising the financial impact on the residential aged care provider and the individual employee.
Background
The Residential Aged Care COVID-19 Employee Vaccination Support Grant will contribute towards costs incurred by eligible residential aged care providers (Providers) supplying or facilitating COVID-19 vaccinations for staff. Providers can apply for financial support in any or all of the following three categories:
- Category 1: payment for each casual staff member’s off-site vaccination (maximum of 2 doses/payments per casual staff member). This payment is a contribution towards the time casual staff are absent from the facility to receive their COVID-19 vaccination at an off-site vaccination clinic; and/or
- Category 2: one day of paid leave for casual staff (not eligible for entitlements) receiving an on or off-site vaccination, who was rostered on for a shift within 24-48hrs after receiving a vaccination, but suffered side effects from the vaccination and were unable to attend work for this reason; and/or
- Category 3: facilitation of either on or off-site vaccinations for all staff (e.g. transport costs or arranging for groups of staff to be vaccinated off-site).
Objective
The objective of the program is to minimise the risk of COVID-19 infection occurring in residential aged care services by supporting the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine to staff.
The intended outcomes of the program are:
- residents of residential aged care facilities experience safe quality care;
- the financial costs of facilitating COVID-19 vaccination for staff are reduced for
eligible residential aged care providers; and - the financial impact on staff not attending work, due to being vaccinated, are reduced (e.g. reimbursing casual staff for any unearned wages).
Funding
Up to $11 million is available over one year (2021-22) for this grant opportunity.
Eligible Projects
Eligible activities must directly relate to the grant opportunity and may include:
- paying contributions to the cost of wages and paid leave for casual staff as required; and
- facilitating on or off site vaccinations for staff.
Eligible expenditure items include:
- Contribution to the cost of wages for casual staff who have received a COVID-19 vaccination off-site. An employer’s taxation obligations must be met according to
law, including in respect of the PAYG taxation system nominations in place for each worker. - paid leave for casual staff who have received a COVID-19 vaccination on or offsite, who was rostered on for a shift within 24 – 48 hrs after receiving a vaccination,
but suffered side effects from the vaccination and were unable to attend work for this reason. An employer’s taxation obligations must be met according to law,
including in respect of the PAYG taxation system nominations in place for each worker; - expenses associated with the facilitation of staff members on or off-site vaccinations.
Eligible Applicants
To be eligible you must be:
- an approved Residential Aged Care Provider ; and/or
- a State Government funded or operated Residential Aged Care Facility; and/or
- an National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Flexible Aged Care Program (NATSIFACP) service provider.
In addition to the above eligibility criteria, eligible applicants must satisfy the criteria below:
- have operational places/beds at the time of this grant opportunity; and
- aged care facilities needing to facilitate an on or off-site COVID-19 vaccination program for employees.
Timing
Applications close 29 October 2021.
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