As of 9 January 2025, Australian residential aged care homes (RACHs) continue to grapple with the challenges posed by COVID-19, with 289 active outbreaks and 1,907 active cases reported nationwide.
This marks an increase of 16 outbreaks compared to the previous week, highlighting the ongoing risks faced by aged care residents and staff.
According to the latest government data, 154 new outbreaks have been recorded since 2 January 2025, involving 1,431 new resident cases and 528 new staff cases. Tragically, 13 residents succumbed to the virus during this period.
Despite these concerning figures, the fatality rate has significantly decreased since the pandemic began, dropping from 33% in 2020 to just 1.8% in 2024, reflecting advancements in treatment and vaccination.
Since the onset of the pandemic in 2020, there have been 236,889 cumulative cases among residents and 125,628 cases among staff. A total of 7,244 residents have lost their lives to COVID-19.
Vaccination remains a cornerstone of the government’s strategy to protect vulnerable populations. As of 8 January 2025, 70.2% of aged care residents have received a booster dose in the past year, but only 46.3% of residents aged 75 and older have received a booster in the last six months.
This figure varies by state, with the ACT achieving the highest rate at 59.3%, and the Northern Territory lagging at 40.6%.
Although vaccination efforts continue, the number of residents receiving booster doses has declined, with 9,352 residents vaccinated in the past 28 days compared to 12,972 in the preceding period.
The aged care workforce remains under significant strain. Since the pandemic began, over 200,000 shifts have been filled by surge workforce providers to support facilities impacted by COVID-19. In the past week alone, 12 shifts were filled across six aged care homes.
As of 19 December 2024, over 6,000 infection control monitoring spot checks have been conducted at aged care facilities by The Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission.
These checks assess personal protective equipment (PPE) usage and adherence to infection control protocols.
Since 2022, antiviral treatments such as Lagevrio (Molnupiravir) and Paxlovid have been distributed to aged care homes, with over 170,000 prescriptions issued. These treatments, alongside vaccination, offer a critical line of defence against severe outcomes.
