Not even vaccine-hesitant Aussies waiting for Novavax really wanted the jab
Just one per cent of Australia’s 51 million doses of this vaccine were used, while the rest of them face the prospect of being thrown out.
Deemed the “alternative” Covid vaccine, there were high hopes for Novavax in Australia when the more traditional formula got the tick of approval from the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) in January.
Due to its similar composition to hepatitis B, tetanus and diphtheria vaccines, a large amount of interest was shown for Novavax, or Nuvaxovid, by those who were reluctant to take either AstraZeneca, Pfizer or Moderna vaccines.
Additionally experts, like TGA boss Adjunct Professor John Skerritt, believed the increased interest would see vaccination rates rise from 95 per cent fully vaccinated to at least 98 per cent.
“I would have had several hundred emails from individuals and groups who have said for whatever reason we would like to have [this] particular vaccine … this just gives them further choice,” Professor Skerritt said upon Novavax’s approval in January.
But six months on, those hopes have since been quashed with only one per cent of the federal government’s 51 million dosage supply administered and the remaining supply of manufactured doses destined for the bin.
Just 167,800 doses of the protein-based vaccine have been administered across the country up to July 14 this year, the TGA reports.
The amount is minuscule compared to the more than 42 million Pfizer doses and almost 14 million AstraZeneca doses administered since their respective approvals in 2021.
Meanwhile more than 4.7 million Moderna jabs are in arms across the country.
So with so much hysteria prior to its release, the question remains: why hasn’t there been more uptake for the Novavax vaccine?
A case of missed opportunity
In October 2021, the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) conducted a poll to see how many doctors received inquiries about Novavax.
The results revealed 55 per cent of GPs had patients “waiting” on the vaccine.
While the interest was there in the final quarter of last year, three months on the stats revealed a different story.
On the 19th January this year, the TGA provisionally approved Novavax as a Covid-19 vaccine for Australians 18-years-old and above.
At the time of the Novavax order, Australia’s double vaccination rate was already above 90 per cent and the main focus had shifted to vaccinating children.
“While a very small cohort of people waited to receive the Novavax vaccine for their own personal reasons, the absolute majority of Australians heeded expert advice and got vaccinated as soon as possible,” RACGP president Adjunct Professor Karen Price said.
With such a high intake of Pfizer, AstraZeneca and Moderna vaccines, Dr Caroline de Moel from La Trobe University’s Department of Public Health found that 51 million doses of Novavax was simply not needed.
“The first shipment was three million doses in February (this year). At that time there were about 900,000 people aged 18 and over left in Australia who had not yet received a double dose, so only a maximum of 1.8 million doses could be provided,” Dr de Moel told news.com.au.
What happens to the expiring vaccines?
It’s important to note that Australia hasn’t received the full allocation of the country’s Novavax supply, with some of the stock yet to be shipped.
However, with a shelf life of only six months, it’s anticipated that the unused 2.8 million doses from the first shipment would be approaching their expiration date.
Dr de Moel says there is hope that a portion of the in-date vials will be used as booster shots.
On June 9 this year, the TGA granted provisional approval for those aged 18 plus to receive Novavax as a third ‘booster’ dose on the condition that “no other Covid-19 vaccine is considered suitable for that individual”.
“Provisional approval means that the use of this vaccine in Australia is still subject to certain strict conditions, such as the continuous provision of information to the TGA on longer-term efficacy and safety,” Dr de Moel said.
However, this still leaves the issue of millions of additional doses allocated to Australia that face the prospect of going to waste if nothing is done to dramatically use-up supply.
Associate Professor in Public Health at La Trobe University, Deborah Gleeson, is calling on the Labor government to thoroughly consider if the country needs such a large stockpile.
“The Albanese government really needs to think about whether those doses could be relinquished and funnelled through COVAX, the global mechanism for distributing vaccines,” Professor Gleeson said.
“Sending them through COVAX would mean that they could be delivered to countries that are ready and able to take them and countries that need them the most.”
Why did the government order so many doses to begin with?
Professor Gleeson said one factor for the excessive order has to do with wealthier countries stockpiling on all Covid-19 vaccinations.
“Despite our slow domestic rollout of vaccines by August 2021, the Morrison government had entered into agreements to secure more than 280 million doses (of multiple vaccines), which is more than 10 doses per head of (the Australian) population,” she said.
“(At the beginning of the rollout) more than half of the global supply of vaccines, the first 7.5 billion doses, were bought by wealthy countries making up only 14 per cent of the global population.”
As a result, COVAX struggled to meet its target of delivering two billion doses to low income countries by the end of 2021, and has only provided 1.6 billion vials since the rollout commenced.
“At this stage, more than 80 per cent of people in low income countries remain unvaccinated,” Professor Gleeson said.
Looking forward
While 51 million doses of Novavax are still allocated to Australia, the Department of Health says it’s working closely with vaccine manufacturers to ensure vaccine supply deliveries align with the country’s requirements.
“The Department also continues to monitor the use and ordering patterns related to Novavax, and is taking to steps to minimise wastage of vaccines across the Covid Vaccine Program,” a spokesperson for the department told news.com.au.
The Albanese government announced that an independent review will be conducted into the country’s vaccine rollout, which will be led by former Secretary of the Commonwealth Department of Health, Professor Jane Halton.
“The Australian community has seen the consequences of the Morrison Government being caught flat footed on protecting Australians through vaccinations and treatments,” Health Minister Mark Butler said.
“This review will provide a deep dive into current supplies and how we plan for the future vaccine and treatments needs.
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