Covid-19 vaccine: 24/7 clinic plan to accelerate rollout
Vaccine clinics could open 24/7 to accelerate the rollout, but many Queenslanders may be waiting months. GETTING THE JAB? VOTE IN OUR POLL
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Vaccine clinics could work around the clock to get Covid-19 jabs into most Australians’ arms by the end of the year, but supply issues mean some Queenslanders may have to wait until October to get their first shot.
Nearly 140,000 people have registered with Queensland Health to get their Pfizer jab, although Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has warned bookings may not become available until October or November due to supply constraints.
But clinics may run 24 hours when supply ramps up in the final three months of the year, with the man in charge of the logistics of Australia’s vaccine rollout declaring “nothing’s off the table” as state and territory leaders meet today to “war game” a plan to get jabs in arms.
Supply of Pfizer to Queensland’s state-run clinics are expected to plateau at 64,350 a week through July and August, according to Health Minister Yvette D’Ath, with frontline workers, including aged care staff, to be prioritised.
But at the same time, Pfizer stocks to a handful of Queensland GPs will also increase, from 90 clinics handing out 30,120 doses among them this week, to 250 clinics armed with 62,940 doses by the end of July.
With AstraZeneca preferred for people aged over 60, limited Pfizer supplies are hampering the rollout’s expansion.
“We have 139,875 Queenslanders who have registered to get the Pfizer vaccine,” the Premier said yesterday.
“What I want to say to those people out there is you will be given a booking, but the booking may not be until October or November, because that is when all the supply comes in from the Federal Government.
“I just need everyone to be patient and if we do get extra supply in, Queensland Health will contact you and we will be able to move your appointment forward.”
State-run hubs are capable of administering 100,000 doses a week, but will be held back by a constrained supply.
Latest data revealed 96 per cent of the Queensland Government’s vaccine supply had been administered.
“We look forward to being able to increase our vaccinations from October but of course this is all subject to supply,” Ms D’Ath said.
“Please be patient.”
Federal vaccine rollout authorities believe every Australian who wants to be vaccinated can get their jabs by the end of 2021, as supply ramps up “moderately” in July and August before increasing substantially from September.
Covid-19 vaccine logistics lead Commodore Eric Young did not rule out having clinics run 24 hours in the last three months of the year in a bid to sprint to the finish line.
By the last quarter of 2021, GPs, pharmacies, Commonwealth vaccination clinics, Aboriginal health services and state-run hubs will have significant supply of Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca and potentially Novavax.
“Nothing’s off the table,” Commodore Young said.
“What we’ll very carefully do throughout the year is monitor utilisation and the stock on hand of each one of those channels.
“And where those channels have no capacity, we’ll look for additional channels, and there’s a raft of opportunities and as a raft of different ways we can achieve that.”
Health Minister Greg Hunt agreed, saying if those administering the vaccine needed to work longer hours, it would happen.
Mr Hunt, in response to Queensland’s claims some people would have to wait until October to get a vaccine booking, noted Pfizer supply across all channels of the rollout was set to increase by nearly 200,000 doses this month.
As of Sunday, 9 per cent of Queenslanders aged 16 and over had been fully vaccinated, while a third had received at least one dose.
State and territory leaders are expected to “war game” the logistics of the vaccine rollout for the rest of the year with Covid-19 vaccine rollout lead Lieutenant General John “J.J.” Frewen on Tuesday.
Each jurisdiction has already been informed of how much vaccine they can expect to receive each week for the rest of the year.
Meanwhile, select GPs began administering Pfizer jabs for the first time on Monday.
The federal Health Department confirmed Queensland accounted for 90 of Australia’s 250 Pfizer-jabbing GPs as of yesterday, with the number to increase to 250 out of 1300 by the end of the month.
The more than 5000 GP clinics involved in the vaccine rollout could be handing out Pfizer in the coming months as supply increase.
“This will maximise the impact of the rollout across Australia and ensure better access to the Pfizer vaccine,” Mr Hunt said.
“In the first instance, it will provide additional Pfizer vaccines to regional, rural, and remote areas.”
IT’S THE YOUNG AND THE JABLESS
Young Queenslanders could be waiting up to three months to get their first jab of the Covid-19 vaccine, leaving them feeling left behind in the national rollout.
Those who register their interest for a Pfizer jab could be waiting until October for an appointment when larger supplies are expected to hit state vaccine hubs.
Although they’re prepared to patiently wait their turn, young Queenslanders such as Juliette Markovich, 24, of Brisbane’s Bowen Hills, said the wait was unfair considering the progress other countries were making.
“I think it’s pretty unfair; I know older people and those with illnesses need to get it, but I think it should also be available for everyone,” Ms Markovich said.
“Places overseas seem to be giving it to everyone, so why can’t the same happen over here?”
She said she would be keen to get the jab wherever it’s on offer including the suggestion of pop-up vaccination hubs at retail giants such as local Woolworths and Bunnings stores.
Meanwhile, Phoebe Sutch, 18, of Bridgeman Downs in the Moreton Bay region, said an October appointment would be better late than never.
“It’s a supply-and-demand thing I reckon; a lot of people want it,” she said.
“But I’m happy to wait, so long as people who really need it are getting taken care of.
“I definitely plan on still registering.”
Ms Sutch believed plenty of people in her age group were keen to get the vaccine including some who had already got in early.
“I have friends who’ve gotten it already,” she said.
“They weren’t priority groups, they just got it because they wanted it and were lucky to go on a day when there were spares.”
Originally published as Covid-19 vaccine: 24/7 clinic plan to accelerate rollout
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