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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Christopher Knaus and Natasha May

As Covid crippled aged care sector only 30 ADF personnel a week were sent to help

ADF medical personnel wearing protective equipment walk outside an aged care facility
ADF medical personnel assess needs at an aged-care facility in Frankston, Victoria. The average number of personnel deployed each week in 2022 has been 30. Photograph: Pte Michael Currie/PR IMAGE

An average of just 30 defence force personnel were deployed to aged care facilities across Australia each week while the sector buckled under the latest Covid wave, data shows.

The most recent data details about 3,000 Covid deaths in residential aged care this year alone, dwarfing the toll from the pandemic’s first two years combined.

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