Health ministers from across states endorse the report and press the federal government for funding to tackle the bottleneck, with negotiations continuing ahead of a Brisbane meeting led by the federal Health Minister.

The bottleneck is tied to disputes over hospital funding shares, disability service funding, and the pace of new aged care facility construction, with projections calling for about 10,000 new aged care beds each year while only 800 were delivered last year.

A Greens senator grilled health department officials about the national aged-care bottleneck contributing to hospitalisations among vulnerable Australians.

Officials indicated urgent and priority care is provided more quickly when assessed as needing, underscoring variability in access based on urgency.

During budget estimates, officials acknowledged some older Australians are waiting for residential aged care placement, while stopping short of claiming the issue is widespread.

The core issues include expanding aged care capacity, boosting home care packages, and reforming disability funding as part of a 2023 national cabinet agreement on shifting funding shares and growth caps between Commonwealth and states.

The federal government proposed $1 billion over five years for general aged care and $2 billion over four years to tackle hospital bed blockages, but states like Queensland say the offers are insufficient and seek about $7–8 billion.

Prime Minister urged Queensland to take a cooperative approach, criticizing its public campaign and referencing a previously sent good-faith letter to push for a breakthrough.

Ministers say patients are medically ready for discharge but cannot leave due to a shortage of federally managed aged care capacity, shifting burden to hospitals and delaying care.

A nationwide report found more than 3,000 aged care patients medically ready for discharge are occupying hospital beds because placements are unavailable.

State health ministers described the situation as urgent and a national tragedy, with cross-jurisdictional concern highlighted by ministers from ACT and South Australia.

Queensland has the highest number of stranded patients, followed by New South Wales, indicating regional disparities in the problem.