Kangaroo Island at risk of Covid after jab snub when borders open, says MP

Kangaroo Islanders are vulnerable to a Covid outbreak when borders open as they were left without jabs for a month, their MP says. Jabs will return to the island next week.

Kangaroo Islanders have been discriminated against and are vulnerable to Covid-19 when borders reopen after they were left without access to vaccinations for more than a month, the local MP says.

Member for Mawson, Leon Bignell said the government’s plan, which would see a nurse administer a maximum 80 doses a week from November 8, would not allow the 300 people in need of their second jab the opportunity to receive it by the time borders open.

“Doing the maths of it, there’s just not enough time,” Mr Bignell said.

He said hundreds of other people on the island had not received their first jab, and it could not handle a Covid outbreak.

“Kangaroo Island is really popular for people from interstate and overseas, and once those borders open up, we’re going to have a lot of people coming here from Covid hot spots around Australia,” he said.

“We don’t have the health facilities to cope with an outbreak of Covid-19,” he said.

SA Borders will open to interstate and overseas travellers on November 23.

Mawson MP Leon Bignell reckons KI is vulnerable. Picture: Keryn Stevens

Health Minister Stephen Wade announced on Sunday vaccinations would be available from the Kingscote GP from next Monday.

A state government spokesman said they would be increasing the amount of days the nurse administering jabs would work from two days to three a week. He said there would not be any problems with vaccinating all islanders before borders opened.

KI has the second highest vaccination rate in the state at 77 per cent

Mr Bignell said for more than a month there had been no opportunity for islanders to have a vaccination without spending up to $300 to travel inland.

“They (the state government) needs to compensate people who, through no fault of their own, had to travel to Victor Harbor and back to get a vaccination as there was no access to it here,” Mr Bignell said.

“The people on the island have one respirator here, and they need to be reassured that at least if they’ve been double vaxxed they’re got a better chance of not ending up in hospital and not ending up dead.”

The Royal Flying Doctor Service assisted the initial vaccination hub at Kingscote between June and the start of October.

Mr Bignell encouraged people who travelled to the mainland for their second jab to contact him.

SA Health has hit back at Mr Bignell’s claims, saying the island’s high vaccination levels “make a mockery of the claims the island has been forgotten”

In a statement on Sunday, SA Health congratulated the KI community for rolling up for vaccination.

“The KI population has the second highest second-dose vaccination rate in South Australia, and are well placed to be fully vaccinated at well above the 80 per cent mark before borders open on November 23”, it said.

SA Health said that from November 8, there would be a local KI nurse providing jabs up to three days a week, based on demand, with the local GP practice.

“Additionally, a further pop-up clinic is planned for KI. The LHN is also continuing to work with the local private pharmacist to have them credentialled as a vaccinator for a long-term strategy”.