Mandatory COVID-19 vaccination reporting

Provider reporting on resident and workforce COVID-19 vaccination

All aged care providers are required to report on COVID-19 vaccinations and exemptions via the provider portal each Tuesday.

Online resources are available to help providers meet their reporting requirements. This includes a step-by-step user guide, webinar and the following fact sheets:

• Guidance for residential aged care providers on reporting resident and workforce COVID-19 vaccinations
• Guidance for in home and community aged care providers on reporting workforce COVID-19 vaccinations
• Guidance for sub-contractors on reporting workforce COVID-19 vaccinations.

What needs to be recorded and reported

All aged care providers must continue to report on COVID-19 vaccinations and exemptions via the portal each Tuesday.

When you enter the provider portal, you will be able to see the data reported previously. If there has been no change since your last report, you don’t need to enter the same data again.

Residential aged care providers must report on the number of residents who have received a single dose only, two doses, three doses (for residents assessed by a health practitioner as being severely immunocompromised), a booster dose or Winter dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.

All aged care providers are required to report the number of workers who have received a single dose only, two doses and booster dose of a COVID-19 vaccine as well as any exemptions to a COVID-19 vaccination under state and territory public health orders that may apply.

Providers should ensure they are familiar with the public health order relevant to them.

If a staff member is not required to be vaccinated, services are still required to include them in the total number of workers reported through the provider portal, and can now include these workers in their vaccination reporting.

COVID-19 vaccination reporting on aged care workforce

The reporting fields for reporting de-identified data on residential, in-home and community aged care workforce COVID-19 vaccination status at an outlet level are:

1. Total number of service staff providing services
2. The number of service staff who have received a single dose only of a COVID-19 vaccine
3. The number of service staff who have received two doses only of a COVID-19 vaccine
4. The number of service staff who have received one booster dose of a COVID‑19 vaccine  
5. The number of service staff with an authorised permanent exemption to a COVID‑19 vaccination, or who are not required to be vaccinated, for medical reasons
6. The number of service staff with an authorised temporary exemption to a COVID‑19 vaccination, or who are not required to be vaccinated, on a temporary basis for medical reasons
7. The number of service staff with an authorised temporary exemption to a COVID‑19 vaccination, or who are not required to be vaccinated, due to inability to access a COVID-19 vaccine
8. The number of service staff with an authorised temporary exemption to a COVID‑19 vaccination, or who are not required to be vaccinated, due to a critical workforce shortage OR to maintain the provision of quality of care OR to protect the health and safety of care recipients
9. The number of service staff with an authorised exemption related to another category in the relevant State/Territory public health order, or who are not required to be vaccinated under the public health order.

Providers can use Question 9 to report workers that are not out of scope of any COVID-19 vaccine mandates under the relevant public health order (eg. some in-home and community aged care office workers are not required to receive any COVID-19 vaccinations).

Providers are not required to report on workforce COVID-19 Winter dose vaccines which are voluntary and available only to those workers who meet the criteria for a Winter dose as defined by the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI).

COVID-19 vaccination reporting on residents in aged care facilities

The provider portal reporting fields for reporting de-identified data on aged care residents’ COVID-19 vaccination status at an outlet level are:

1. Total number of residents at the service
2. The number of residents at the service who are unwilling or clinically unsuitable to receive one or more doses of a COVID-19 vaccine
3. The number of unvaccinated residents at the service who are willing and clinically suitable to be vaccinated
4. The number of residents at the service who have received a single dose only of a COVID-19 vaccine, who are willing and clinically suitable to receive additional doses
5. The number of residents at the service who have received two doses only of a COVID-19 vaccine, who are willing and clinically suitable to receive additional doses
6. The number of severely immunocompromised residents at the service who have received three doses of a COVID-19 vaccine, who are willing and clinically suitable to receive additional doses
7. The number of residents at the service who have received a booster dose of a COVID‑19 vaccine, who are willing and clinically suitable to receive additional doses
8. The number of residents at the service who have received a Winter dose of COVID‑19 vaccine

Providers with multiple outlets co-located at one residential aged care site operating as one facility are requested to use one outlet ID for reporting their worker and resident vaccination information in the provider portal. If the sites operate completely independently, they should be reported against each outlet ID.

If you fail to meet your reporting requirements, the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission might take regulatory action.

Case studies are provided to assist residential and in-home and community aged care providers in their reporting obligations.

Reporting resident vaccination status after a COVID-19 infection

The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) advises that all people should wait for 3 months after a confirmed COVID-19 infection before they receive their next COVID-19 vaccine dose. The next scheduled dose should then be administered as soon as possible.

For residents not yet eligible to receive their next COVID-19 vaccine dose due to a current or recent COVID-19 infection:

• if they are willing and/or clinically suitable to receive their next dose when eligible, count them against the last administered COVID-19 vaccine dose – eg. if a resident has received an initial booster dose, include them in the total number of residents who have received a booster dose and are willing and clinically suitable to receive additional doses
• if they are unwilling and/or clinically unsuitable for further vaccination, include them in the total number of residents who are unwilling or clinically unsuitable to receive one or more doses of a COVID-19 vaccine.

Support for residents and workers

All providers are encouraged to share information about your record keeping and reporting requirements.

Fact sheets are available:

• Booster information for residential aged care workers
• Information for in-home and community aged care workers.