1 week Ago By Olivia Willis
Less than half of Australia's aged care residents 75 years and older are up to date with their COVID-19 vaccinations — despite being at the highest risk of severe illness and death. "It is crucial for us to increase vaccination rates in residential aged care homes," Australia's chief medical officer and aged care quality and safety commissioner recently wrote in a , urging them to prepare for winter. The letter follows issued by the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission in late March which noted the commission's chief clinical advisor was "concerned about persistently low COVID-19 vaccination rates across many residential aged care homes".
Data shows 45.8 per cent of aged care residents over 75 years have received a COVID vaccine in the past six months. National immunisation guidelines .
All COVID-19 vaccinations are free for people living in Australia. Meanwhile, in the wider community, data from the Department of Health and Aged Care shows . Infectious diseases specialist Paul Griffin said the risk of dying from COVID-19 was much lower now than at the beginning of the pandemic, but that the disease still posed a significant risk to older Australians, particularly those in aged care.
"The COVID landscape has changed very significantly and many people now, rightly or wrongly, perceive the risk as very low. But in the aged care setting, the risk remains high," Professor Griffin, director of infectious diseases at Mater Health Services in Brisbane, said. As of April 10, there were 70 active COVID-19 outbreaks in residential aged care homes across the country, according to health department data.
Professor Griffin said low vaccination rates were particularly concerning heading into winter months, which typically bring an increase in respiratory illnesses. "When we have another wave, which unfortunately is inevitable, the impact of that wave will be greater than it would have otherwise been based on the fact that we're perhaps doing the least to reduce the impact of COVID that we've done since the pandemic began," he said. COVID still causing hospitalisations and death While all Australians aged 75 and over are recommended six-monthly COVID-19 boosters, adults aged 65 to 74 are also .
The same applies to severely immunocompromised people aged 18 to 64. "A dose every six months is most likely to benefit people with medical risk conditions and/or those living in residential aged care homes," the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation notes. People in this cohort are otherwise recommended to get a COVID-19 booster every 12 months.
In December, the Department of Health and Aged Care wrote to every aged care facility in Australia to remind them of their obligations to keep residents safe and offer regular vaccinations. "The Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission will be monitoring vaccination rates for each home and take action where required," the department said in late last year. But according to the , 491 aged care homes — approximately a fifth — have vaccinated less than one in 10 residents in the past six months.
The national peak body for aged care providers, Ageing Australia, was contacted for comment but declined to respond. As a new wave of COVID-19 hits Australia, why are so few aged care residents up-to-date with their COVID-19 vaccinations? Robert O'Sullivan, president of the Australian and New Zealand Society for Geriatric Medicine, described current vaccination rates as "concerning" and urged providers and residents to increase uptake. "We're still seeing people in hospitals presenting with COVID-19 with serious illness .
.. It's still a significant cause of death in older people, and particularly people in nursing homes," Dr O'Sullivan said.
COVID-19 remains the , ahead of influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). In 2024, 3,852 Australians died from COVID-19; 92 per cent of them were aged 70 and over. Improving health messaging and access To improve vaccination levels, Dr O'Sullivan said it was important to increase public health messaging around the prevalence and seriousness of COVID-19, particularly amongst older age groups, which had "fallen off" in recent years.
"Part of it is probably that COVID is a relatively new illness and we don't really have any other vaccine preventable illnesses that require six-monthly vaccination," he said. "Going forward, we need to be very consistent with the message that just as annual influenza vaccination is a really good thing for older people to prevent serious illness and death, six-monthly vaccination for COVID — if you're aged 75 and over or living in a nursing home — is really important." Follow @abchealth on Instagram, where we're busting myths and sharing practical, smart health advice.
Professor Griffin added that improving access was also key. "People are finding it a little bit more difficult than they did before — they're not being let know where to get these vaccines or which one to get." In aged care facilities, the federal government provides funding for GPs, pharmacists and primary care providers to administer free COVID-19 vaccines to residents.
In the community, COVID vaccines are free for all Australian adults and eligible children, and people are encouraged to speak to their doctor or health provider about vaccination (HealthDirect can also ). Professor Griffin recommended getting the Pfizer JN.1 booster (known as Comirnaty JN.
1) which was made available late last year. "While the previous one [Omicron XBB.1.
5-containing vaccine] will provide some protection, we know that COVID is continuing to change ...
so I would certainly opt for the latest one." COVID-19 boosters can be safely administered at the same time as the flu vaccine, which is now available through GPs and pharmacies. Many older Australians are also now .
"We see RSV not uncommonly in hospitals and there is now vaccination available, so I'd encourage people to talk to their doctor," Dr O'Sullivan said. Health in your inbox.
