'Significant failings' in Victorian aged care homes: PM

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has labelled reports of neglect in Victorian aged care facilities as "distressing", admitting there have been "significant failings" in some homes.

Mr Morrison was asked about one case at the Epping Gardens home, where one of the residents son's told the Herald Sun he was informed of his mother's death 11 hours after she died.

Staff from the home reportedly rang the man to ask for the body to be removed, as it was deteriorating and the facility did not have refrigerated room.

READ MORE: Serious mismanagement claims at Epping Gardens Aged Care, more than 77 coronavirus cases linked to facility

"These are the distressing situations I was referring to earlier in the week. As they are incredibly distressing," the prime minister said.

"They are the product of a very severe crisis that occurred in a number of these sectors and we have been fairly upfront about that and the reasons as to how that took place."

Another resident's daughter, Anna Maria Mattia, told 9News she believed her mother showed signs of neglect when she was transferred to hospital to be treated for COVID-19.

READ MORE: Face masks to be made mandatory for all Victorians

"My grandmother's lying in a hospital bed fighting for her life, she's pretty important to us," Ms Mattia told 9News.

"She was riddled with infection when she arrived at hospital. Urinary infection, lung infection, dehydrated."

The prime minister said the strategy to move residents into hospitals was a solution to slowing down the outbreak within aged care facilities.

"There have been significant failings in those areas and that's what the team has been working to address and to ensure that we don't get a repeat of that, remembering that when you get an outbreak in the community, that does affect workforce, whether it is an aged care facility or any other type of workplace," Mr Morrison said.

"One of the challenges that we are facing in Victoria at the moment is that we are still seeing too much transmission in workplaces."

READ MORE: Victoria records deadliest day of pandemic with 723 new cases

DEADLIEST DAY ON RECORD

Victoria has recorded its deadliest day of the pandemic so far, recording 723 new cases overnight and 13 additional deaths.

The state has now recorded a total of 9998 cases of COVID-19 and the death toll has risen to 105.

Ten of the new deaths are related to the evolving aged care crisis currently gripping the states 770 facilities.

"We send our condolences, our best wishes, our thoughts and prayers to those families. This will be incredibly challenging," Premier Daniel Andrews said.

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