FOI 26-2990 – Future Fit Nov 2024 Budget Approvals

Written by Claude Haiku 4.5 from the extracted text on 10 Jul 2026. It can miss or misread redacted and scanned pages. Check the source before relying on it.

The Department of Health's Future Fit project, established in 2021, aimed to address viability concerns within the Meals on Wheels (MoW) network under the new Support at Home aged care program. The initiative sought to develop a new funding model recognizing MoW's social value, improve operational efficiency through technology adoption, and expand meal choice by establishing relationships with multiple suppliers. The project involved 33 MoW providers across 82 sites in pilot locations including Whitehorse and Ballarat. However, implementation encountered significant challenges including stakeholder conflicts, misaligned interests between key parties, complaints about service decline at pilot sites, alleged fraudulent activity, and conduct issues involving contractors. The November 2024 budget estimates documentation indicates the department acknowledged difficulties in managing the project while attempting to balance competitive pressures from alternative meal delivery models in the contestable aged care marketplace.