The Federal Government says it won’t deregulate the number of residential aged care places until they can guarantee enough services for rural and regional areas.

The Aged Care Roadmap, released by the Aged Care Sector Committee in April, urged the Government to deregulate both aged care places and prices, but Assistant Minister for Aged Care Ken Wyatt (pictured) says this will not go ahead until there is “a secure model for rural and regional Australia.”

Residential beds are currently allocated on a yearly basis to providers, with applications for 2016-17 closing last week.

Providers say deregulation will prevent the elderly from missing out on care, but this latest announcement means any changes will be staying on the backburner for the time being.