Manila, The Philippines - 8th October 2020 The Global Union Federation representing health workers, Public Services International (PSI), has taken a strong message warning against the perils of privately operated aged care to the 71st World Health Organisation Regional Committee for the Western Pacific. The intervention called on the regional committee to ensure aged care is operated as a quality public service and that workers are afforded trade union rights to ensure safety and a quality service.

It is increasingly clear that the mortality rate in privatised care is higher than in public care

The regional committee, using a virtual format this year, is considering a Regional Action Plan for healthy ageing which includes countries in East Asia, Oceania, and many in South East Asia. This is in the context of the Decade of Healthy Ageing (2020–2030) endorsed by the World Health Assembly in July.

The Regional Action Plan encourages countries to include the private sector in planning and provision of aged care at national and community level without addressing the challenges that have emerged with an increased role of the private sector. Australia has had firsthand experience of Covid-19 outbreak in long-term care settings where 74% of all deaths have been in aged care, but the WHO plan fails to draw the lessons from the Covid experience.

The PSI intervention was delivered by Rob Bonner from the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (South Australia Branch), a union representing thousands of frontline workers in the aged care sector. In Australia, the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in outbreaks killing 676 residents in privately run aged care services. In a stark contrast, there have been no COVID-19 related deaths in publicly run facilities.

“Aged care has been commercialised globally and promoted as an investment opportunity for private equity. Covid-19 has proven this to be a disastrous way to offer quality, safe care for older people. It is increasingly clear that the mortality rate in privatised care is higher than in public care. That shouldn't be a surprise as profits need to be generated by the private sector which largely comes from reduced staff costs” said Rob Bonner Director, Operations and Strategy, Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (South Australia Branch).

If we want quality, dignified care, we need facilities to be accountable to the public, not to shareholders

Recent research published in Health Affairs in the USA found that there is a 30% lower Covid-19 mortality rate in unionised aged care facilities than in non-unionised facilities. Investigation by the Centre for International Corporate Tax Accountability and Research has found that Australian private age care sector largely lacks transparency making it impossible to see how much money is going on staff, food, medical and hygiene supplies necessary for a dignified life. Government funds intended for care often end up in tax havens.

“Covid has provided evidence of the huge benefits public care and unionised workplaces have for public health. If we want quality, dignified care, we need facilities to be accountable to the public, not to shareholders. Unionised workplaces provide more protection for workers to report poor quality of care and OHS hazards that put both workers and residents at risk. Public, unionised workplaces commonly deliver higher staff to resident ratios and, importantly, a less casualised, insecure workforce . If we care about older people we need to learn lessons from this pandemic and ensure the benefits of public run care unionised workers are clear in the WHO Regional Action Plan", said Kate Lappin, PSI Regional Secretary for Asia Pacific.

See all statements and videos on the WHO website.