New government health data has laid bare a troubling reality: Western Australia is falling alarmingly behind when it comes to support for its ageing population.
According to Commonwealth Gen Aged Care data released by the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing for the March quarter 2025, WA has just 43 Home Care Packages (HCP) available per 1,000 older people — the lowest number of any state or territory.
Across the country there are 62 HCP per 1,000 people in Victoria and South Australia and 59 in New South Wales. Even jurisdictions like the Northern Territory (50) and Tasmania (48), challenged by their remoteness, are faring better while the ACT, with a significantly smaller population, is on a par with 43.
As at 31 March 2025, 22,226 people in WA were on a HCP. Between 1 January 2025 and 31 March 2025, the department released 3,629 HCP in WA. Of those, only 1,855 were new, meaning less than half went to people waiting for a package.
Western Australians are also missing out on residential care, with only 65.5 places available per 1,000 people aged 70 and over. South Australia, by contrast, has 71.7. Victoria has the second highest number of operational beds by state with 71.5, followed by New South Wales (69.2) and Queensland (67.2).
But this is not just a matter of numbers. These figures represent real people who are missing out on essential support.
They also represent longer wait times for delayed home care services, aged care beds and, as a result, increasing pressure on families and hospitals to fill the gaps.
As reported in The West Australian on 6 August, around 250 hospital beds a day in WA are currently being used by people who are eligible for home care or residential care.
The situation is considerably worse in regional areas, where a shortage of at-home support and aged care beds for older people means the hospital is the only alternative.
There is evidence to show people in home care situations are more likely to be admitted to hospital than those in residential aged care due to a lack of supports – and yet we are not giving them the supports that will enable them to stay at home.
We also know WA’s hospital system is already under strain, with the state recording its highest-ever ambulance ramping figures in July.
When you think the average hospital bed costs $2,370 per day compared with a place in aged care of about $350 a day, it really is a no-brainer.
While we acknowledge the state government’s plans to introduce a $100 million low-interest loan scheme to support the delivery of up to 500 concessional aged care beds next financial year, and its “Time to Think” program offering 42 transitional beds in Perth for patients moving to at-home care, older Western Australians are still facing significant delays – waiting an average of 10 extra days in hospital and 16 additional days for an aged care placement.
Older Western Australians deserve better. They have contributed a lifetime to building this state, and now they are being left behind in one of the most basic measures of public care.
The solution isn’t simple, but it must start with a clear acknowledgment from both state and federal governments that WA is underserved — and that fixing this inequity is urgent.
Older people, particularly those in the regions, want to stay close and connected to where they are from. Aged care shouldn’t be a postcode lottery.
Russell Bricknell
CEO, Juniper Aged Care
Contact 
1300 313 000