Wait for Pfizer jab three times longer than AstraZeneca

Rule changes and mixed advice have undermined confidence in the Covid vaccine rollout leaving the country exposed.

Australians trying to get a Covid-19 vaccine appointment will get in three times faster if they opt for an AstraZeneca jab.

Online GP booking service HotDoc – which has organised nearly three million vaccine appointments – has revealed people who want a Pfizer shot have to wait on average at least 32 days for an appointment.

Those who opt for an AstraZeneca jab have to wait on average just 11 days.

News Corp Australia last month reported doctors were warning some AstraZeneca vaccines were reaching their six-month expiry date because of a drop-off in demand due to fears about an extremely rare blood clot side effect.

But since the breakout of the highly-infectious Delta variant – which has led to lockdowns in Sydney and Melbourne – there has been a small surge in people making appointments for AstraZeneca shots, with 80 GP clinics asking for extra supplies.

Luciana, 10, a year 5 student from Barwon Heads Primary School, first in line for testing next to Barwon Heads CFA at Barwon Heads Community Park, Victoria. Picture: Jason Edwards

HealthEngine covers more than 1200 clinics Australia-wide offering vaccines and said 80 per cent of clinics are offering AstraZeneca and 12 per cent were offering Pfizer.

The short wait times mean people could be fully vaccinated faster if they went with AstraZeneca because of the long wait times for initial Pfizer appointments.

The government’s expert vaccine advisory committee this week changed its advice and shortened the recommended gap between AstraZeneca shots from 12 weeks to between four and eight weeks in Covid-19 outbreak areas like Sydney and Melbourne.

There is a three to six week gap between Pfizer shots.

Constant changes in expert advice about who should get which vaccine have undermined confidence in the vaccine rollout leaving the country exposed as the highly infectious Delta variant spreads.

Previously Pfizer was the preferred vaccination for the under 60s this week the advice changed and those under 60 are being asked to reassess the benefits of having AstraZeneca.

The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) says the eligibility criteria is now way too complex to understand and it is calling on state and federal governments to simplify it.

The Victoria Park/Pakapakanthi Covid-19 drive-through testing site is open 24 hours but there are already long line ups of over an hour. Picture: Keryn Stevens

In Western Australia, anyone over the age of 30 is eligible to receive a Pfizer vaccine, while those as young as 16 can get it in the Northern Territory and some rural areas of South Australia but you have to be over 40 in other states.

In addition, the Government announced last month that any Australian aged under 60 can receive the AstraZeneca vaccine after talking through their options with their GP.

This rule only applies in general practices, not state-based vaccine hubs.

“The goalposts seem to be shifting every other day and I am concerned that some patients will find it all too difficult and delay or avoid getting vaccinated altogether,” RACGP president Dr Karen Price said.

The RACGP is calling on state and federal governments to clarify vaccine eligibility criteria and promote consistency between states and territories.

Even when you are eligible for a jab the booking process is overly complex.

It takes more than seven steps to get to the point where you can make a booking using the Australian Government’s online vaccine booking service and then you often have to ring the GP clinics offered.

It takes 12 steps to book a vaccine through Queensland Health, including collecting a verification code on your phone, creating passwords, completing mandatory forms and then receiving a QR code which must be printed out or saved electronically.

Health Minister Greg Hunt said on Friday 890,000 Australians had a vaccination in the last week.

Originally published as Wait for Pfizer jab three times longer than AstraZeneca