In December 2022, the Australian government launched the Aged Care Star Ratings system, a flagship reform born from the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety’s call for transparency.
Marketed as a simple one-to-five-star guide to help families choose residential aged care, it promised clarity in a sector scarred by neglect and abuse. But as of April 7, 2025, that promise is a mirage – a costly, taxpayer-funded illusion that the Department of Health and Aged Care (DoHAC) refuses to admit is fundamentally broken.
The system isn’t just flawed; it’s a betrayal of trust, misleading families while haemorrhaging millions on development, fixes, and glossy campaigns to mask its failures.
Worse, the DoHAC’s refusal to own these mistakes – despite mounting evidence of deception – reveals a department more invested in optics than outcomes, leaving vulnerable seniors and their families to pay the price.
A shaky foundation and a refusal to face facts
The Star Ratings system, launched on December 19, 2022, grades facilities on resident experience (33%), compliance (30%), staffing (22%), and quality measures (15%).
It was a direct response to the Royal Commission’s 2021 Recommendation 12, which demanded a transparent quality rating system to empower consumers. But from the start, the system was rushed and riddled with flaws.
Shadow Aged Care Minister Anne Ruston called out its reliance on outdated data in 2023, citing cases like Blue Haven Bonaira in Kiama, NSW, which held a 3-star rating despite failing six of eight standards.
Families were misled, providers were furious, and the DoHAC’s response was to double down rather than admit the system’s foundational issues.
By July 2023, a technical “glitch” in the Government Provider Management System forced the ratings offline, delaying the quarterly update. This wasn’t a one-off error—it was a symptom of a system buckling under its own ambition.
The initial rollout, part of an $11.3 billion post-Royal Commission reform package, saw over $32.5 million allocated to IT infrastructure and data collection (2022-2023 Budget). Yet, all that money couldn’t deliver reliability. Instead of acknowledging the system’s structural flaws, the DoHAC blamed technical hiccups, avoiding the harder truth: the Star Ratings were built on sand.
Throwing good money after bad
Rather than pause and reassess, the DoHAC poured more fuel on a flickering flame.
The 2023-24 Budget allocated $139.9 million to “improve” the system, a staggering sum to prop up a tool already failing families. Then, in October 2024, the DoHAC launched a $3.9 million advertising campaign to polish the system’s tarnished image.
Crafted by Ogilvy Australia ($657,000 contract) and amplified by a $2.6 million media buy through Mediabrands, the 30-second campaign ran across TV, digital platforms, and medical centres until December 28, 2024. Its goal?
To “raise awareness” of a system under fire for inaccuracy – a cruel irony for families like Rodney Reed’s, whose wife Kath suffered in Victoria’s 4-to-5-star Charles Brownlow, losing 7 kilograms to sepsis in 2023 while the home’s compliance rating inexplicably rose to 5 stars.
This $143.8 million spent on refining and promoting the system since 2023 dwarfs the $11 million annual budget of the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission, the body tasked with ensuring provider accountability.
Yet, the DoHAC refuses to concede that the system isn’t working. Adjunct Professor Rodney Jilek’s March 2025 “Groundhog Day” report revealed that over 50% of non-compliant homes held 4-star ratings, with four achieving a perfect 5.
Wallsend Aged Care in Newcastle, for instance, boasted a 5-star rating in August 2024 despite failing all eight standards, a farce exposed by ABC’s 7.30. Why won’t the DoHAC admit that this system is misleading consumers on a grand scale?
A system designed to deceive
The Star Ratings system’s flaws are structural, not accidental. Jilek’s January 2024 report found 501 facilities on the Non-Compliance Register between November 2022 and December 2023, yet many scored 3, 4, or 5 stars.
Non-compliance only impacts ratings if the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission imposes sanctions – a step it rarely takes.
Merrimac Park in Queensland racked up breaches for 14 months without penalty, retaining high scores. Shaz Campbell, whose mother Diana Bourn died after neglect there, called it a betrayal: “No other family should go through this.”
The DoHAC’s own data lags – sometimes by up to three months – compound the deception, while self-reported metrics invite manipulation. Jilek’s April 2025 report dropped a bombshell: the system is “rigged to make the aged care sector look better than it is.”
When 91% of homes scored 3 stars or higher in 2022, despite the Royal Commission’s finding that one in three residents faced neglect or abuse, the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation’s Annie Butler remarked, “The bar must be set very low.”
The DoHAC’s refusal to address these criticisms head-on suggests a deeper conflict of interest: having invested millions and tied the system to the Royal Commission’s legacy, admitting failure would be a political and reputational disaster.
Why won’t the DoHAC own its mistakes?
The DoHAC’s refusal to take accountability is rooted in a potent mix of financial, political, and bureaucratic pressures.
The department has sunk over $32.5 million into the system’s initial rollout, followed by $143.8 million in enhancements and promotion since 2023. This investment, part of a broader $11.3 billion reform package, was meant to restore public trust post-Royal Commission.
Admitting the system’s flaws would mean conceding a misuse of taxpayer funds. A tough pill to swallow with an election looming on May 3, 2025.
Politically, the Star Ratings system is a cornerstone of the government’s aged care reform narrative. In 2023, then-Minister for Aged Care Anika Wells called it “a game-changer for families” (DoHAC Media Release, 2023).
The new Aged Care Act, set to take effect on July 1, 2025, further elevates the stakes, with the Strengthened Quality Standards emphasizing transparency and resident wellbeing (as outlined in the document you provided).
Conceding that the Star Ratings system is misleading would undermine the entire reform agenda, especially as advocacy groups already warn of confusion and unreadiness among providers.
Internally, the DoHAC faces a conflict of interest. Staff and leadership who championed the system may feel personally invested in its success, and admitting failure could reflect poorly on their performance.
This defensive posture is evident in the department’s non-response to queries (as this masthead experienced) and the ACCC’s deflection to the DoHAC, claiming it’s their responsibility.
The DoHAC’s silence reeks of pre-election stalling, prioritiszing optics over accountability while families like Rodney Reed’s are left questioning how a 5-star rating could mask such profound care deficits.
A betrayal paid in full
The human cost of the DoHAC’s refusal to own its mistakes is devastating. Families rely on the Star Ratings to make life-altering decisions, yet they’re being misled by a system that cloaks failure in high scores.
The financial toll adds insult to injury, especially when the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission operates on a fraction of that budget to ensure real accountability.
The DoHAC’s $3.9 million ad campaign, launched just six months ago, is the latest slap in the face, a desperate bid to salvage a sinking ship while families drown in confusion.
Australian seniors and their families deserve better than a system built on sand and soaked in cash.
Until the DoHAC stops hiding behind technical excuses and glossy campaigns, and starts owning its failures, the promise of aged care reform will remain a hollow echo.
Transparency must outrank spin, and accountability must replace denial. The cost of inaction – both human and financial – falls squarely on those the system was meant to serve.
Thank you for this assessment of the Star system. As a Home care provider we are looking at enormous changes under Support at Home program and there are indications that the Star rating system will be applied to Home care at some stage.
As a visiting Gerontic educated RN who takes Uni nursing students to aged care facillities
I am amazed.at.the lack of.clinical RN experience.
What chance can there be for a service who’s Minister is never at the wheel. The Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission has been unfit for purpose since it’s inception. If a Country is judged on the way they treat their Elders, Australian politicians should hang their heads in shame.
Well said!
Another master stroke by Labor in aged care. A bit of window dressing here and there, changing the name from “Agency” to ” Commission”, adding the trendy “diversity” to the mix, mandating care minutes , which in itself is spurious because all residents don’t have the same needs – one sock doesn’t fit all, and biology doesn’t know about about management and “care minutes” or “star ratings”. If you want to improve aged care talk to the people at the coal face – the AIN’s who provide the actual care, those who care for the aged, personal carers, not consultants, unions, bureaucrats, and the large providers who always seem to have the big say. And finally,big isn’t beautiful. Economy of scale may improve the profits, but it doesn’t improve the loving care.
Brilliant article, honest and real. One that demonstrates the level and depth of deception that Aged Care recipients and their families attempt to battle daily.
Thank you