12 deaths in aged care as Victoria records highest number of new cases since start of the pandemic

Victoria hit a new high of 725 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, bringing the state’s total number of active cases to 7,227 and the biggest daily increase since the start of the pandemic.

The previous highest total was 723 cases, recorded on July 30.

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews also confirmed 15 new deaths including 12 aged care recipients – and a total of 1,435 cases now linked to aged care.

Those deaths included a man in his 30s (Australia’s youngest victim of the pandemic), four people aged in their 70s, six people aged in their 80s and four people aged in their 90s.

The major Victorian aged care outbreaks include:

• 159 cases linked to St Basil’s Homes for the Aged in Fawkner (17 new cases since Tuesday)
• 155 cases linked to Epping Gardens Aged Care in Epping (20 new cases since Tuesday)
• 139 cases linked to Estia Aged Care Facility in Ardeer (32 new cases since Tuesday)
• 114 cases linked to Kirkbrae Presbyterian Homes in Kilsyth (4 new cases since Tuesday)
• 93 cases linked to Estia Aged Care Facility in Heidelberg (4 new cases since Tuesday)
• 78 cases linked to Arcare Aged Care Facility in Craigieburn (33 new cases since last Friday)
• 74 cases linked to BaptCare Wyndham Lodge Community in Werribee (18 new cases since Tuesday)
• 72 cases linked to Glendale Aged Care Facility in Werribee (7 new cases since Tuesday)
• 68 cases linked to Aurrum Aged Care in Plenty (4 new cases since Tuesday)
• 67 cases linked to Menarock Life Aged Care Facility in Essendon (3 new cases since Tuesday)

There are now 538 Victorians in hospital with COVID-19, including 42 in ICU.

Aged care cases have “stabilised” but no guarantees over future patient movement

Mr Andrews spoke on aged care in his briefing after confirmation that over 300 residents have now been transferred to hospital.

“A number of those settings that, I think it's fair to say, were in crisis, they have stabilised,” he said.

“In fact, I think all of them could now be described as ‘stable.’”

However, the Premier warned of further outbreaks in aged care.

“There will be additional settings where we need to – when I say ‘we’, us the Federal Government, public hospitals, private hospitals – we need to step in and do more and of course we will do that,” he added.

More hospital transfers likely – uninfected residents to be moved out too

Mr Andrews also said more hospital transfers might be on the horizon.

“I can’t guarantee you there won’t be more patients moved. There have been enormous numbers of staff involved in transporting those – at least 300, there’s probably transports going on right now. Often that is because the person is sick, but in some respects, they are moved because there’s not a confidence that the infection control protocols can be delivered in that aged care setting. So, the safest thing to do is to move those residents out.”

Victorian Health Minister Jenny Mikakos confirmed hospitals had capacity to adsorb more residents from aged care facilities.

“Obviously those decisions are made on a clinical-care basis, it can be very traumatic for aged care residents to be transferred from what is their home,” she said.