Red tape threatens to remove a man with Down's syndrome from his elderly mother
An elderly mother and her disabled son are at risk of being separated over the woman's aged care home's red tape.
Anne Deans, 81, moved into an aged care facility in July and hoped that she would be able to bring her son, Mark, who suffers from Down's syndrome with her.
Mark, 56, has always lived with his mother, and despite his disability, has lived a full life and has dabbled in acting, appearing on Aussie TV hit Blue Heelers.
But now, the mother and son have been left in limbo by a bureaucratic battle.
Despite the family's history and Mark's disability, the government refuses to fund a place for Mark at Anne's aged care home, stating that aged care is "not an appropriate service for people aged under 65".
"People with Down's syndrome have a life expectancy of 60 years. That's if we're lucky. So Mark is experiencing all of the age issues that my Mum is," Mark's sister Sharon said.
Sharon and her sister Michelle have been lobbying on Mark's behalf, with Michelle saying, "I don't know why it's so hard. There's so much red tape."
"There's so many hills to jump, just to have a mum and a son together. It doesn't make any sense."
Anne is digging in and appealing to the Minister for Aged Care Anika Wells for help.
"I brought him up all these years, and all of a sudden someone's going to walk in and take him out," Anne told A Current Affair.
"It is damn ridiculous. They should open up their eyes and see what it's doing. He's not going anywhere. I don't know how I'm going to stop it, but I will."
In a statement, Ms Wells said, "While Aged Care is generally not suitable for people under the age of 65, we recognise there are exceptional circumstances where people may need to enter aged care before this age, including when there is no suitable accommodation for them."
"The New Aged care Act includes exceptional circumstances for people to enter Aged Care before they turn 65, including when they would otherwise be at risk of homelessness."
"There are processes in place to support people to explore their options and ensure they have safe and appropriate accommodation."
"We encourage Mark to continue to work with Ability First Australia and the Aged Care Assessment Teams to explore all the options."
Image credits: A Current Affair