Can the Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP) Fund Daily Check-In Calls?
CHSP is the entry-level rung of government aged care — and the program more older Australians use than any other. If your mum or dad is on CHSP, or about to be, you might be wondering whether it can pay for a daily wellness call.
The honest answer: sometimes, depending on your provider and region. This guide explains how CHSP works, what to ask your assessor, and why most families simply start the calls privately — from about $2 a week — while the funding question gets sorted.
What Is the Commonwealth Home Support Programme?
CHSP is the Australian Government’s entry-level aged-care program. It funds small amounts of practical help at home for people aged 65 and over (50 and over for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people) — the kind of support that keeps someone living independently well before they need anything more intensive.
It’s also the aged-care program with the largest reach: hundreds of thousands of older Australians receive at least one CHSP service, and for most people it’s their first contact with the aged-care system. Services are arranged after a fairly quick assessment rather than a long approval process, and clients usually chip in a modest contribution towards the cost.
Domestic assistance
Help with cleaning, laundry and the household jobs that have quietly become harder to manage alone.
Meals and food services
Delivered meals and help with shopping or preparing food, so eating well doesn’t depend on cooking every night.
Transport
Lifts to appointments, the shops and social outings for people who no longer drive.
Social support
Companionship visits, group activities and — in some regions — telephone-based contact. This is the category check-in calls may fall under.
Allied health and therapy
Physiotherapy, podiatry, occupational therapy and similar services that keep people moving safely at home.
Home maintenance and modifications
Minor repairs, grab rails and small practical changes that make the home safer to live in.
How to Access CHSP Through My Aged Care
Everything in government aged care starts with My Aged Care — call 1800 200 422 or start at myagedcare.gov.au. For CHSP specifically, the path is simpler than many families expect:
1. Contact My Aged Care
Call 1800 200 422 or apply online. You can call on behalf of your mum or dad, but they’ll need to give their consent — have them nearby if you can.
2. Screening conversation
A short chat about which day-to-day tasks are getting harder. Nothing is decided here; it simply works out which assessment fits.
3. Home support assessment (RAS — not ACAT)
For CHSP, an assessor visits for the simpler home support assessment, historically run by the Regional Assessment Service (RAS). The comprehensive ACAT-style assessment is only for higher-level care needs.
4. Referral to local providers
You’re referred to CHSP providers in your area for the approved service types. Most services ask for a modest client contribution, based on what your parent can afford.
If the system feels opaque — it does to almost everyone at first — our plain-English My Aged Care guide walks through every step, from the first phone call to services starting.
Can CHSP Fund a Check-In Call Service? The Honest Answer
CHSP includes social support as a funded service type — including individual social support, which can cover companionship visits and, in some areas, telephone-based contact and wellbeing checks. On paper, that’s a reasonable home for a daily check-in call.
Here’s the honest part: CHSP funding is delivered through grants to individual providers, and each provider is funded for particular service types in particular regions. Some providers offer telephone-based social support; many don’t. There’s no national rule that says a daily check-in call service is — or isn’t — covered. It genuinely depends on who operates in your area and what they’re funded to deliver.
What to ask
“Is telephone-based individual social support — a regular wellbeing call — something that can be included in the support plan?”
“Do you offer, or can you fund, a phone-based check-in and wellbeing service in this region?”
Put the question to the assessor during the home support assessment, or to your parent’s current CHSP provider. If the answer is yes, it may cost your parent little or nothing. If it’s no, or the wait is long, you haven’t lost anything by asking — and you still have the fast path below.
CHSP Hasn’t Ended: Where It Fits After Support at Home
In November 2025 the Australian Government launched the Support at Home program, which replaced Home Care Packages for people with higher-level needs. That change caused a lot of confusion — but it did not end CHSP.
CHSP continues to operate alongside Support at Home in 2026, and current CHSP clients keep their services as normal. The government has flagged that CHSP will eventually move into Support at Home at a later stage, but there’s nothing you or your parent need to do about that now.
If your parent has been assessed for higher-level care, our guides to the Support at Home program and daily calls and Home Care Package funding for check-in calls cover those pathways in the same honest detail.
The Practical Reality: Most Families Just Pay Privately
Funding conversations take time. Assessments get scheduled weeks out, providers vary, and the answer on check-in calls is a genuine maybe. Meanwhile, the whole point of a daily call is that it starts now — this week, not next quarter.
That’s why most families simply pay for Kindly Call themselves. Plans run from about $2 a week for a weekly call to about $12 a week for a daily call — an amount most households can absorb without needing a funding line to cover it. Prices shown are indicative monthly amounts and can change — the current figure is always on the sign-up page, and you see it before you ever pay a cent.
A sensible approach: start privately (the first week is free, with no credit card required), and ask the CHSP question in parallel. If a provider can fund it later, lovely. If not, you haven’t delayed the thing that actually matters. For a full breakdown of what each plan includes, see how much daily check-in calls cost in Australia.
A couple of honest notes: Kindly Call is not a medical or emergency service and doesn’t replace 000, and we’re transparent that the caller is a friendly AI — we never pretend a human is on the line. None of this is financial advice; CHSP arrangements differ by provider and region, so always confirm details with My Aged Care or your provider.
CHSP and Check-In Calls: Common Questions
Can CHSP pay for a daily check-in call service?
Sometimes. CHSP includes social support service types that can cover telephone-based contact and wellbeing checks, but whether a check-in call service is funded depends on your provider and your region. Ask your My Aged Care assessor or your current CHSP provider directly — there is no national guarantee either way.
Do I need an ACAT assessment to access CHSP?
No. CHSP uses the simpler home support assessment, historically delivered by the Regional Assessment Service (RAS). The comprehensive ACAT-style assessment is reserved for higher-level care needs such as Support at Home and residential aged care.
Has CHSP ended now that Support at Home has started?
No. Support at Home replaced Home Care Packages in November 2025, but CHSP continues to operate alongside it in 2026 and current CHSP clients keep their services as normal. The government has flagged that CHSP will move into Support at Home at a later stage, so nothing changes right now.
What does Kindly Call cost if CHSP won’t cover it?
Plans start at about $2 a week for a weekly call and about $12 a week for a daily call, with a 7-day free trial, no credit card required and no lock-in contract. Prices shown are indicative and can change — the current figure is always on the sign-up page.
Start the Calls This Week — Ask About Funding in Parallel
Every Kindly Call plan starts with a free first week. Set-up takes a few minutes, your mum or dad just answers the phone as normal, and you get a summary after every call — while the CHSP conversation runs its course.
Start Their Free First Week →No credit card required. Any phone. No lock-in.
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