CNN, Bloomberg, BBC, react to Australia’s vaccine rollout

Australia’s bungled vaccine rollout is making world headlines as media outlets say our covid strategy is “hanging by a thread”.

Australia’s botched covid vaccine rollout is being used as an example of what not to do in terms of responding to the global pandemic.

Media outlets from the US to Greece are questioning how Australia, once an example of how to deal with the coronavirus outbreak, is now so far behind the rest of the world.

“If you woke up in Australia today, you’d be forgiven for being confused about vaccinations. There’s been the slow rollout, the lack of supply, and vaccine hesitancy. Now, add mixed messaging from the leadership to this list and you’ve got a perfect storm,” the BBC reported.

“Australia remains in an enviable position globally, with an overall low number of Covid-19 cases and deaths. But the next few weeks will be crucial – with the country’s Covid success now hanging in the balance.”

The BBC highlighted that Prime Minister Scott Morrison” has been widely criticised for the vaccine rollout’s failures.”

How the BBC reported news of Australia’s vaccine rollout.

The BBC’s Frances Mao described Australia’s vaccine rollout as “getting really messy”.

“Cohesion in govt messaging basically fell apart today,” she wrote.

The situation is getting really messy in Australia. Half the population is in lockdown, new cases have popped up in vulnerable areas. Fed and state govts attacking each other over vaccines/borders. Cohesion in govt messaging basically fell apart today:https://t.co/P9N0OqxYoL

— Frances Mao (@francesmao) June 30, 2021

Australian officials reporting near 100% household transmission with #DeltaVariant, compared to 25% before. "Delta is just extremely, highly contagious. And even with vaccinated workforce there's still potential to transmit”. Not enough vaccine either. 🧵https://t.co/58sIDwpSlc

— Eric Feigl-Ding (@DrEricDing) June 30, 2021

Even in Greece, where the country’s own vaccination rollout has been middle of the road among European counterparts, media has been highlighting the fact that despite its own issues around vaccination hesitancy, Australia is doing worse.

“Australia’s vaccine program has been mired by narrow supply and mixed messaging,” the Greek Herald reports.

“Greece is among several other countries outperforming Australia’s fledging Covid-19 vaccination program, new figures from Our World In Data (OWID) show.”

“Greece currently ranks 35th in the world in the OWID’s list of doses administered, with 33.91 per cent of its population vaccinated while Australia sits in 40th place in the worldwide rank of developed and developing countries with just 4.8 per cent of its population fully vaccinated.

The Greek Herald reporting on Australia’s vaccine rollout.

Blomberg News said that Australia’s ‘covid zero’ strategy is quickly becoming ‘covid limbo’ amid our slow vaccine uptake.

“While there are signs that the latest lockdowns may have sparked a surge in people getting jabbed, Bloomberg Vaccine Tracker data still shows Australia’ lagging compared to other major economies within the Asia-Pacific region,” Bloomberg said.

“Australia has administered shots to cover just 14.7 per cent of its population, according to Bloomberg’s vaccine tracker, compared to China at more than 43 per cent and South Korea at 19 per cent. The country of 25 million is also well behind major economies in North America and parts of Europe, with the US at almost 51 per cent, UK at nearly 58 per cent, and Italy at 42 per cent.”

The BBC reporting on Australia’s vaccine rollout.

CNN reported that Australians were “getting weary of these sporadic disruptions to their lives.”

“Australians, who basked in their early successes, are wondering how much longer this can go on,” CNN reported. “Australia was celebrated for its initial response to the Covid-19 pandemic, and for getting its economy more or less back on track long ago.

“But with that security has come complacency, particularly in the federal government, which failed to secure enough vaccine doses to prevent the regular ‘circuit breaker’ lockdowns that come every time a handful of cases emerge, or even the longer restrictions that Sydney is experiencing now.”

CNN reporting on Australia’s vaccine rollout.