Queenslanders urged to get vaccinated so state can be reopened before Christmas
Complacency is leaving Queenslanders in peril should Covid-19 infiltrate in a big way, experts have said, as the state languishes in last place of the vaccination race.
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Complacency is leaving Queensland in peril should Covid-19 infiltrate in a big way experts warn, as the state languishes in last place of the vaccination race.
State-run vaccination hubs, GPs and pharmacies are administering increasingly more vaccines each week, but data revealed the amount of people getting their first jab in Queensland had dropped in the last week.
The lethargic vaccination uptake comes as chief health officer Dr Jeannette Young remained concerned about a group of people who had potentially come into contact with Covid-19 at a nail salon in Beenleigh.
There was one new locally acquired case of Covid-19 on Sunday — the mother of an infected four-year-old child, both close contacts of a truck driver that spent days out in the community while infectious.
Two low-risk cases recorded interstate also had Queensland links — a truck driver from NSW and a Qantas pilot who lives in Kingaroy.
A total of 53.08 per cent of Queenslanders aged 16 and older have received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine as of September 4 — the lowest of any jurisdiction.
Experts said complacency and a lack of supply are to blame.
Infectious disease expert Paul Griffin said it was time to shift the focus on keeping Covid-19 out of Queensland, to looking at how the state can be opened up safely and when — a move that would incentivise people to get jabbed.
“The focus has been around physically keeping the virus out, which has been effective for a period of time,” he said.
“But it hasn’t focused on the fact that (Covid-19) will keep coming, and our vaccination rates means we are the most susceptible state.”
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Townsville GP and Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) board member Dr Michael Clements said the threat of Covid-19 did not feel real to many Queenslanders, and living free of a major outbreak like in NSW and Victoria meant people felt they could wait for a jab.
“(For Queenslanders) the urgency and the threat of Covid-19 is still a concept rather than a real one on their doorstep,” he said.
“People are waiting … in NSW and Victoria when there isn’t Pfizer available people are opting for AstraZeneca.”
Queensland’s lethargic vaccine uptake means it is likely to hit the heralded 70 per cent fully vaccinated mark on November 17, a whole month after NSW and two weeks after Victoria.
Based on the national road map, this means Queenslanders will be among the last in the country to enjoy increased freedoms.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said now was the time for Queenslander’s to get vaccinated.
“I cannot stress to you … if you’re sitting at home, and you’re thinking, well, I might just wait, don’t wait,” she said.
The Premier was adamant a lack of vaccine supply was to blame for Queensland’s slow uptake of the vaccine.
Supply to the state is expected to increase in coming weeks, above what was originally planned after the federal government struck deals with Singapore and the UK for a combined 4.5m extra Pfizer doses.
Queensland is set to receive a total of 875,653 jabs from the two deals, on top of the more than 220,000 Pfizer jabs due to arrive each week in September.
Meanwhile, Employment Minister and Gold Coast MP Stuart Robert said Queenslanders would have a right to ask why borders should be closed, once 80 per cent of the state was vaccinated.
He said while the national plan did not outline when state borders should be closed, it would be hard to justify those restrictions, particularly with international travel resuming at 80 per cent.
“(The national plan) says that lockdowns would be very, very rare and targeted, if indeed they were needed, and if lockdowns were very rare and targeted, ipso facto, you wouldn’t need state borders closed,” he said.
But under questioning he could not guarantee that the 80 per cent milestone would not change if circumstances did.
“So many things have changed but that’s why we have a framework called the national plan from which we can plan on and use everything as a basis from,” he said.
IMPORTANT LINKS:
Queensland Health vax registration
https://www.vaccinebookings.health.qld.gov.au/registerforvaccination/
Walk-in vaccinations
Federal Government GPs or pharmacies
https://covid-vaccine.healthdirect.gov.au/eligibility?lang=en
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