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Flu deaths overtake COVID-19 fatalities
In August, 211 patients died from influenza compared to 153 from COVID-19, amid Australia’s record-breaking flu season.
The percentage of fully vaccinated children in Australia decreased between 2023–24 at all key age milestones.
As Australia continues to live through a record-breaking flu season, influenza deaths have surpassed deaths from COVID-19 for the first time since the pandemic’s peak.
In August, there were 211 deaths due to influenza compared to 153 due to COVID-19, according to new Australian Bureau of Statistics data.
Across the entirety of 2025, 1473 deaths due to COVID-19 have been recorded, 977 due to influenza, and 149 respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) deaths.
It also found that between January and August 2025, deaths involving COVID-19 were lower than 2023 and 2024, while deaths involving influenza and RSV were higher.
The data comes as flu cases reach an all-time high across the country with more than 425,000 cases confirmed this year – 26% of those in children aged nine and younger.
RACGP President Dr Michael Wright described the data as a ‘wake-up call’ amid declining vaccination rates.
‘There’s the notion of “vaccine fatigue”, and different types of misinformation, but we should focus on what we can do to ensure as many people as possible are as well protected as possible,’ he said.
‘The lower vaccination rates are likely due to a range of factors. It’s something to study, but what really matters is reversing that decline.’
According to the Annual Immunisation Coverage Report 2024 released on Friday, the percentage of fully vaccinated children in Australia decreased between 2023–24 at all key milestones, including:
- 12 months of age (from 92.8% to 91.6%)
- 24 months of age (from 90.8% to 89.4%)
- 60 months of age (from 93.3% to 92.7%)
The report found that influenza vaccination coverage in children aged six months to five years decreased from 30.3% in 2023 to 27.6% in 2024, and in those aged five to 10 years, it decreased from 17.9% to 15.6%.
Coverage for children aged six months to five years decreased in all jurisdictions except the Northern Territory.
The largest decrease seen was in Western Australia, which fell from 28.8% in 2023 to 22.9% in 2024.
The report found several factors contributed to the ongoing decline, including:
- concerns regarding the safety and the necessity of vaccines
- the increasing number of vaccines on the National Immunisation Program schedule
- vaccine fatigue
- reduced confidence in the importance of childhood vaccination
- increased polarisation related to the intense attention given to COVID-19 vaccination and associated mandates.
In a bid to bolster dwindling vaccination rates, the RACGP is calling for an expanded rollout of the intranasal flu vaccine.
‘We know getting a needle can be distressing for young children and it is great to see the increasing availability of a funded intranasal flu vaccine in
Queensland,
New South Wales,
South Australia, and
Western Australia for the 2026 flu season,’ Dr Wright said.
‘That means for those young kids and their parents, they’ll be able to boost their flu immunity without a needle.
‘Other states and territories should do the same.’
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