How to boost aged care vaccination

In December last year, only 31 per cent of aged care residents had been vaccinated for COVID in the previous six months.

In those six months, more than 1800 people died from COVID, most of them older people.

Meanwhile, in England, more than 80 per cent of care home residents were up to date with their COVID vaccines in time for Christmas.

Australia’s aged care vaccination rate has improved since then. But a resident’s chance of being vaccinated is still close to a coin toss, with only 52 per cent vaccinated in the past six months. In the middle of this year, the rate in England was 68 per cent, and in Ireland it was 80 per cent.

New data shows how many residents in each aged care home have been vaccinated in the past six months.

It gives us the best picture yet of how aged care homes are performing – and the results are very troubling.

More than 1000 aged care homes across Australia have had fewer than half their residents vaccinated for COVID in the past six months.

Vaccination for flu is higher than it is for COVID, but nowhere near good enough. More than 100 facilities had less than 10 per cent of their patients vaccinated for flu in the six months to June this year. About 20 per cent have had fewer than half their residents vaccinated.

The ACT does much better than the rest of Australia, but there are serious problems even there. Five of the 27 aged care facilities in Canberra had fewer than half their residents up-to-date with flu vaccinations. And five have fewer than half their residents up-to-date for COVID.

The Mountain View Aged Care Centre in Narrabundah has had fewer than 10 per cent of its residents vaccinated for COVID in the past six months. And in June, the Bill McKenzie Gardens facility in Page had fewer than 10 per cent of residents vaccinated for flu in the past six months.

Public reporting of vaccination rates for aged care facilities is welcome, and it has led to some improvement. But more action is needed. To make further, faster progress, the federal government should do four things.

First, government reporting of aged care-home vaccination should be expanded to cover shingles and pneumococcal vaccines. Grattan Institute analysis shows that, after taking into account their age and other factors, people living in aged care are much less likely to get these vaccines than other people.

Second, the federal government should set targets for aged care vaccination, covering all adult vaccines. Primary Health Networks, the regional bodies responsible for improving primary care, should be required to help aged care homes meet the targets.

Third, the government should ask the expert body that sets vaccination rules to make them more flexible in aged care. For example, people in aged care should be eligible for COVID vaccinations less than six months after their last vaccine. That is the rule in the UK, and it makes it easier to vaccinate many residents in one visit.

Finally, the federal government should improve the star-rating system for aged care introduced in 2022. It has been criticised for setting a low standard and not being a good guide for potential residents and their families. The system is being evaluated, and a new version should include rates of vaccination at each facility, as well as the proportion of residents getting GP and allied healthcare.

Three years ago, the royal commission found that too many aged care residents were missing out on healthcare despite needing it more than most people. The independent monitor of royal commission implementation recently reported that little has changed.

Some reform is happening, including new funding for GPs who provide ongoing care for aged care residents. More reforms are needed, and they will often be costly and difficult to implement.

But increasing vaccination is urgent and relatively easy. Older Australians deserve much better than a 50-50 chance of getting a flu or COVID vaccination simply because of where they live. These four steps would cost almost nothing and would save lives, so there is no excuse for inaction.