Fewer than one in 10 residents at some aged care homes have received a COVID-19 booster since last winter, as the department cracks down on providers failing to protect residents against deadly viruses.New federal data names and shames 97 aged care facilities where fewer than 10 per cent of residents have had a COVID-19 booster within the past 12 months. At 170 facilities, the vaccination rate was less than 20 per cent.
Aged Care Minister Anika Wells said people with loved ones in aged care should talk to them and their care team about getting COVID-19 and flu vaccines now. “Residential aged care providers have a responsibility to work with these health care professionals to make timely vaccines easily available to residents, and to have robust infection, prevention and control measures in place,” Wells said.
“In the middle of the pandemic, widespread community messaging from health authorities and governments meant that providers were not the only ones encouraging vaccination. Since those messages have ceased, it is a much harder task for providers.”