Aged Care

Where to start in listing the deceitful behaviour of the Coalition government regarding aged care. Is it that the “7th edition” of the Updated National COVID-19 Aged Care Plan has just been released by the federal Health Department when there was no 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th or 6th edition? A great…

The Morrison government has redefined Westminster ministerial responsibility. No longer does a minister bear ultimate responsibility for the actions of its ministry or department. The most recent example is the Aged Care Minister, Richard Colbeck, under whose watch 683 residents in aged care homes have died from Covid. “I don’t feel…

Australia has one of the highest rates in the world of deaths in residential aged care as a proportion of total COVID-19 deaths. So far, 663 residents in aged care homes have died; they are partners, siblings, parents, grandparents and friends. At a Senate Select Committee on COVID hearing on…

The federal government failed to prepare the aged care sector for the pandemic. So stated the special report released on Friday by the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety. And what was the response of the Minister for Health Greg Hunt and the Aged Care Minister Richard Colbeck? Did they…

In the middle of the biggest reputational disaster to hit privately run aged care, with the preventable deaths of more than 500 residents, private providers have launched a public relations campaign to “change the conversation” about aged care and “win the hearts and minds of middle Australia”. Rather than agree to fundamental…

Refusing to publicly name aged care homes with Covid-19 outbreaks; secrecy around the number of deaths in specific aged care homes; information about standards of care and complaints about aged care homes considered “commercial-in-confidence”; voting against reforms that would spell out what the $13bn of taxpayers’ money given each year…

In 2018, soon after the federal government had announced yet another inquiry into aged care, I bumped into the health minister, Greg Hunt, who was jogging on the local boardwalk. I stopped him to ask why we needed another inquiry. Surely the government was aware of the systemic problems in…

For the past week or so, accusations have been flying back and forth about whether a clear national plan has been in place to prevent older people in aged care homes dying from COVID-19. Dr Brendan Murphy, the secretary of the Department of Health, told the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and…

Australia has one of the highest rates in the world of deaths in residential aged care as a proportion of total Covid-19 deaths. So far,198 residents in aged care homes have died; they are partners, siblings, parents, grandparents and friends. We have Covid-19 outbreaks raging in numerous aged care homes…