Bendigo Health release new teen vaccines as Pfizer demand grows

Supplies have been boosted after teens were turned away to get Covid jabs in Central Victoria as three regional towns race to become the most vaccinated region.

Bendigo parents have voiced their disappointment after being turned back while trying to book Pfizer doses for their 12 to 15 year-old children after vaccine eligibility for the young children opened on Monday. Picture: Toby Zerna

Teenage demand for Pfizer vaccines is outstripping regional health supplies as frustrated parents battle to grab a new round of jabs before the next school term.

Bendigo parents have voiced their disappointment after being turned back while trying to book Pfizer doses for their 12 to 15 year-old teens after they became eligible on Monday.

Bendigo MP Lisa Chesters said many concerned parents had contacted her office after failing to get a booking for their children.

“The uptake is so great many parents and teenagers have been turned away,” Ms Chesters said.

“Parents want to get their kids jabbed before going back to school for Term 4.”

Ms Chesters said the demand was so great some clinics were filling up their bookings within two hours of new appointments becoming available.

Bendigo Health board chair Bob Cameron outside the Mollison St vaccination clinic. Picture: Zizi Averill

“(The Federal Government) has fallen short on their promise …(We) haven’t got the jabs in the regions to meet our demand,” she said.

In August Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt announced all 1.2 million Australian children aged between 12-18 would have access to a vaccine during the course of 2021.

A health minister spokeswoman said additional Pfizer supplies and the Moderna rollout would provide more opportunities for kids to get their first doses.

“We encourage parents to continue to check the vaccine clinic finder to see if appointments become available in a site near them,” she said.

Bendigo Health said 100 kids aged 12-15 had already received their jab within days of becoming eligible, with more than 2000 placements opening up.

The health service said a further 400 bookings for Bendigo VCE students were left, after more than 600 teenagers took up their priority vaccination placements.

“They’re filling up,” Bendigo Health board chair Bob Cameron said.

Bendigo Health board chair Bob Cameron said Bendigo was leading the race to meet the 90 per cent first dose threshold. Picture: Zizi Averill

Mr Cameron said parents desperate to get their kids jabbed would be notified when new bookings become available.

He said because children were the last group to become eligible, they would be trailing the rest of the community in the race to reach 100 per cent vaccination.

Mr Cameron said on Sunday Bendigo passed the 75 per cent first dose threshold and they were expected to hit 90 per cent by the end of the month.

Bendigo, Warrnambool and Geelong were head-to-head in the race to be the first to reach 90 per cent, with the regional competition likely to come down to a matter of days.

He said the three regions would reach 90 per cent fully vaccinated by mid-November.

“The true winner of the race is the city that gets closest to 100 per cent,” he said.

“Every per cent we go up it reduces the (outbreak) risk).

“The quest ultimately is to see how high we get up before we plateau.”