In a recent interview with Sky News’ Andrew Clennell, Minister for Aged Care and Sport Anika Wells skirted around key concerns regarding the aged care sector, particularly the alarming rise in COVID-related deaths and worsening home care package wait times.
Despite serious questions being raised, Wells remained defensive, shifting blame to past governments and deflecting responsibility for the current state of aged care.
During the interview, Clennell pressed Wells on the troubling statistic that COVID-19 deaths in aged care facilities have now surpassed those seen during the height of the pandemic.
Instead of acknowledging the government’s responsibility in managing infection control, Wells downplayed the severity of the situation, attributing the rise to increased community transmission and changes in lockdown policies.
“Look, that statistic, while I agree is alarming, is a result of it being more prevalent in the community because we aren’t locking down nursing homes like we did…,” Wells explained, before shifting the focus to the alleged preferences of aged care residents.
“Actual residents [are] saying to me when I go around nursing homes, please don’t lock us down again.”
While it is true that residents may prefer more freedoms, Wells failed to address the government’s role in ensuring adequate infection prevention measures within facilities.
The lack of stringent oversight on staff vaccination, PPE availability, and proper ventilation protocols has left vulnerable residents at heightened risk. Her response also glosses over the fact that aged care facilities remain high-risk environments, where even milder strains of COVID-19 can have devastating effects.
Wells also attempted to justify the current situation by comparing mortality rates, claiming that deaths are now less frequent in proportion to infections. “It was up to something like one in three when people contracted COVID like you say during the pandemic. It’s now… somewhere between one in twenty, one in forty depending on the week reporting numbers.”
This framing ignores the fundamental issue: a government’s responsibility is not just to manage statistical probabilities but to prevent avoidable deaths wherever possible.
By failing to strengthen infection control policies, the Albanese government has left aged care providers scrambling to manage outbreaks with insufficient resources.
Perhaps more damning was Wells’ response to Clennell’s questioning on the soaring wait times for home care packages. Under the Morrison government, the wait for a package was reportedly under six months.
However, under the current administration, wait times have ballooned to anywhere between 12 and 15 months, leaving thousands of elderly Australians in limbo.
Rather than acknowledging the worsening crisis, Wells sought to reframe the issue, blaming the previous Coalition government for failing to enact broader structural reforms.
“I have always said we are bringing aged care back from the brink. It was absolutely in crisis, the government – the Morrison government – knew that. There was a Royal Commission telling them that. They did nothing structural about it,” she asserted.
While it is true that the Morrison government faced criticism for its handling of aged care, Wells’ response conveniently ignores her government’s failure to address these pressing issues since taking office.
She pointed to the upcoming launch of a restructured home care system on July 1st, stating, “From July 1st, a whole new home care system, billions of dollars, about $5 billion worth of money going into the new home care system.”
However, this does little for seniors currently languishing on waiting lists, many of whom require immediate assistance to maintain their independence at home.
Throughout the interview, Wells repeatedly leaned on the narrative that aged care was already in crisis before her tenure, failing to take ownership of the deteriorating situation under her government’s watch.
While she touted the additional funding being poured into the sector, she offered little in the way of immediate solutions for those currently waiting for care or at risk due to COVID-19 outbreaks.
The aged care sector, already under immense strain from staffing shortages and increased regulatory demands, is in desperate need of practical, immediate interventions—not just long-term policy promises.
Home care delays are not just numbers on a page; they represent real people struggling without the support they need. Similarly, rising COVID-19 deaths are not an inevitability but a consequence of inadequate government action.
Anika Wells has never had the interests of the Aged as a priority. The new Aged Care act which she is pushing, discriminates once again those on a Pension who receive a HCP, will have to contribute to that care out of their meagre Pension. These people mostly live below the poverty line already. This new act will push more older folk into a facility.
The act also removes quite a lot of necessary items that can be purchased from the HCP. The Aged Care advocates have not been listened to.
Anika is too busy at Entertainement and sporting events to focus on our issues in Aged Care, as highlighted by Paul Murray Live on 10/2/25