PoliticsNow: Princess Alexandra Hospital in lockdown as doctor tests positive
Medical registrar from the Princess Alexandra Hospital was in contact with COVID patients on Wednesday, active in community while infectious.
- Hospital lockdown as doctor tests positive
- Hotel quarantine cost Victoria $400m
- Reynolds set for Higgins settlement
- AstraZeneca paused over clot fears
- Jobs at risk as CBDs ‘abandoned’
- Vaccine plan may drag into 2022
Welcome to PoliticsNow, our live coverage of the latest political headlines from Canberra.
One of Brisbane’s busiest hospitals is in lockdown after a senior doctor tested positive to COVID-19.
Victoria’s hotel quarantine program has cost nearly $400m, it has been revealed. Deputy PM Michael McCormack says Victoria’s track record of closing borders ‘at the drop of a hat’ meant the state didn’t receive further cut-price flights as part of the Morrison government’s tourism package. NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has expressed her confidence in the vaccination program, saying she is ‘confident we will catch up’. Nordic countries meanwhile have stopped distributing the AstraZeneca vaccine following rare complications that may have caused a death in Denmark.
Robyn Ironside10.30pm:Hospital lockdown as doctor tests positive
One of Brisbane’s busiest hospitals is in lockdown after a senior doctor tested positive to COVID-19.
The medical registrar from the Princess Alexandra Hospital had been in contact with COVID patients in the early hours of Wednesday, and was active in the community on Thursday while infectious.
Contact tracing is underway and a list of places the doctor visited will be released on Saturday.
The PA Hospital’s emergency department remains open it anyone seeking treatment must wear a mask.
All non-essential visits to patients will not be allowed.
Staff will wear masks at all times and patients will be required to wear masks at all times unless it is not clinically appropriate.
Non-urgent outpatient bookings and elective surgery will be postponed.
The hospital is actively working to ensure the safety of staff and patients on campus while contact tracing is undertaken.
READ MORE: Cheap flights ‘aimed at wrong places’
Joseph Lam9.30pm:Jail time for Malaysians who spread Covid fake news
Malaysians could face up to six years in jail under a drastic new law brought in to curb the spread of COVID-19 fake news.
The law, which came into effect on Friday, sees Malaysian citizens face fines of up to 100,000 Ringit ($33,100 AUD) as well as extended jail sentences for either publishing or reproducing “wholly or partly false” content related to the pandemic.
Critics have called the move an attack on free speech and an attempt by the government to stop criticism of its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The law was able to forgo parliamentary approval after Malaysia entered a state of emergency on January 12.
READ MORE: Travel caps: no one said anything about boats
Joseph Lam7.15pm:‘Asian Americans attacked, harassed, scapegoated’: Biden
US President Joe Biden has appeared in a special broadcast to condemn the growing number of “vicious hate crimes against Asian Americans who have been attacked, and scapegoated”.
Over the past several months, numerous videos have circulated showing violent and discriminatory behaviour towards Asian Americans, some of which have resulted in death.
Hundreds have taken to social media including prominent Asian American actors Lucy Liu and Ken Jeong to call out the behaviour and raise awareness.
Biden calls out the rise in hate crimes against Asian Americans during the pandemic, saying they're "attacked, harassed, blamed and scapegoated"
— CBS News (@CBSNews) March 12, 2021
"They are forced to live in fear for their lives just walking down streets in America. It's wrong, it's un-American and it must stop" pic.twitter.com/GRkWzXWzd2
In a special broadcast on Thursday (Friday AEDT) Mr Biden described the behaviour as “unAmerican” and said in the US “too often we turn against one another”.
“At this very moment so many of them, our fellow Americans, they’re on the front lines of this pandemic trying to save lives,” he said.
“And still, they’re forced to live in fear for their lives just walking down the streets in America.”
“It’s wrong, it’s un-American and it must stop.”
READ MORE:‘I will work with China when it benefits the US’: Joe Biden
Rhys Blakely7.05pm:New drug dramatically cuts Covid deaths
A new drug reduces Covid hospital admissions and deaths among high-risk patients by 85 per cent, the drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline has said.
The monoclonal antibody treatment, called VIR-7831, is for people with mild to moderate illness. An independent panel recommended stopping further enrolment in a late-stage trial after evidence emerged of “profound efficacy”, GSK said.
The drug was developed in partnership with Vir Biotechnology, which is based in California. The two companies said they would seek an emergency use authorisation in the US. They may also apply for UK regulatory approval.
Monoclonal antibodies are lab-produced molecules that mimic the antibodies naturally produced by the body when people are infected by the coronavirus. They are seen as a highly promising form of treatment but are very expensive to produce, which is likely to limit how widely they are used.
The study enrolled patients who were either over 55, or who were 18 and older with at least one underlying health condition, such as diabetes.
The drug is said to work differently to other monoclonal antibody therapies. GSK says that it works in two ways - by preventing the virus from entering healthy cells and by promoting the immune system to clear cells that have already been infected.
READ MORE: Why Sydney Uni chose a bureaucrat
Evin Priest6.20pm:Virus warning for 62 Queensland suburbs
Queensland health officials have issued an urgent COVID-19 alert that affects more than 60 suburbs in the state after fragments of coronavirus were found in two wastewater treatment plants.
Coronavirus fragments were detected at the Bundaberg and Gibson Island plants, which cover a total of 62 suburbs.
The state’s chief health officer, Jeanette Young, is concerned because officials are unable to determine whether the fragments contain an overseas variant of COVID-19 or if they are from historical cases.
“We are concerned by the new variants that are emerging overseas that are more contagious than previous variants we have seen in Queensland,” Dr Young said.
“It‘s also possible that this detection relates to previous COVID-19 cases that can shed viral fragments for a couple of months after they are no longer infectious.”
Heidi Han5.25pm:China reports Covid case 20 days after arrival from Oz
China is reporting a confirmed Covid-19 case who was tested positive 20 days after leaving Australia and initially testing negative.
According to information published by Xiamen health authority, the patient arrived in the southeastern city of China on the February 18 with no symptoms before entering quarantine at a local medi hotel.
The Chinese national who worked in Australia, reportedly tested negatives three times after arriving but was diagnosed with the virus 20 days later, on March 10.
Chinese authorities revealed that other passengers on the same flight, XiamenAir MF 802, were isolated and put under medical observation.
It is unknown whether the patient had lived in Sydney before boarding the direct flight to China from Sydney, which has recorded zero cases for over 30 days at the time of departure.
It is also unknown what variant of the virus the patient has.
READ MORE:Biden earns Covid victory
Gerard Henderson5pm:ABC’s Canberra bubble sequel a real fizzer
Louise Milligan plumbs the depths of unprofessionalism, while Jane Caro flicks the switch to Nazi Germany. Read more here
Tim Dodd4.45pm:Why an ex-ABC chief got top uni job
Mark Scott’s rise to the top job at the University of Sydney is response to the fact that government’s ignore universities. Read more here
Angie Raphael4.30pm:Premier’s parents come to his defence
The NSW parents of West Australian Premier Mark McGowan did not mince words as they defended his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, taking a dig at their own state leader in the process.
Mary and Dennis McGowan drove to Western Australia in a caravan, arriving this week from Coffs Harbour just in time for Saturday’s state election.
Mr McGowan on Friday took his elderly parents to tourist attraction Kings Park, where they told reporters they were extremely proud of the way he had dealt with coronavirus.
The couple even said their son had done a better job than NSW counterpart Gladys Berejiklian.
“Much better,” Dennis said and pointed to “the results”.
The Premier said he was looking forward to spending more time with his parents after the election.
— NCA NewsWire
READ MORE:McGowan heads to victory
Agencies4.10pm:Britain advises its citizens to leave Myanmar
Britain on Friday advised its citizens in Myanmar to leave the country, as international concerns grow about the junta’s increasingly violent crackdown on anti-coup protests, AFP reports.
“The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office advises British nationals to leave the country by commercial means, unless there is an urgent need to stay,” the British foreign ministry said in a statement on its travel advice website.
Myanmar’s military has taken control of the country since a coup on February 1 that ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi. At least 70 people have been killed since then.
— Agencies
Ben Wilmot3.55pm:New home sales surge past pre-Covid levels
The surging residential market is carrying over into the sale of new homes with sales running at a higher rate than before the coronavirus pandemic struck. Read more here
Lachlan Moffet Gray3.25pm:APRA drops investigation into Westpac
The prudential regulator has closed an investigation into Westpac over possible breaches of banking rules following its massive failure to report transactions to anti-money laundering regulator Austrac, which led to the largest fine in corporate Australian history. Read more here
Greg Brown2.50pm:New inquiry call into Christian Porter claims
A former boyfriend of Christian Porter’s rape accuser says he has ‘clear recollections of relevant discussions’ with the alleged victim. Read more here
Natasha Robinson2.30pm:Professor Kelly says AstraZeneca is safe
Australia’s chief medical officer Paul Kelly has dismissed concerns that the AstraZeneca vaccine may be linked with blood clots.
Professor Kelly said the Australian government did not believe people who received the AZ jab were at any greater risk of blood clots, following the suspension of the vaccine in Denmark, Iceland and Norway.
The suspension comes as Denmark health authorities investigate the death of a 60-year-old vaccinated woman from a coagulation disorder and another illness from a pulmonary embolism in a person who had received the AstraZeneca vaccine. No link has yet been established with the vaccine.
Professor Kelly said Australian authorities were not concerned about the cases in Denmark.
“There is currently no evidence that the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine causes blood clots,” Professor Kelly said. “The AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine is effective, it is safe, and it’s a high quality vaccine.
“The Australian Government is aware of reports some European countries have suspended the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine due to some reports of blood clots in people who have been vaccinated.
“Safety is our first priority and in a large vaccine rollout like this, we need to monitor carefully for any unusual events so we will find them. This does not mean that every event following a vaccination is caused by the vaccine. But we do take them seriously and investigate – and that’s what Denmark is currently doing.
“There have been more than 11 million people vaccinated in the UK without evidence of an increase in blood clots.”
Professor Kelly said Australia had “a very strong and clear mechanism for adverse event reporting around immunisation” but there was nothing to indicate a link between the AstraZeneca vaccine and blood clots. Australia’s administration of th AstraZeneca vaccine will continue without interruption.
READ MORE:Blood clot fears prompt vaccine suspension
Wall Street Journal2.15pm:Joe Biden sets July 4 Covid deadline
President Biden has pressed states to widen COVID-19 vaccine eligibility to all U.S. adults by May 1, calling for an all-hands effort to defeat the coronavirus to set the stage for small gatherings during Independence Day weekend. Read more here
Robyn Ironside2pm:Travel hopes lift after Qantas trial success
Qantas says it has successfully trialled technology that could allow Australians to travel internationally again. Read more here
Sharri Markson1.40pm:Reynolds to pay Brittany Higgins settlement
Defence Minister Linda Reynolds will pay damages to sexual assault survivor Brittany Higgins as part of a defamation settlement for calling her a ‘lying cow’. Read more here
Robyn Ironside1.20pm:Airlines rush to cut fares as travel interest grows
Airlines are already slashing prices in response to interest in taxpayer-subsidised half-price airfares. Read more here
Wall Street Journal12.55pm:Why the lockdown policy wasn’t worth it
There’s a reason no government has done a cost-benefit analysis: The policy would surely fail. Read more here
Max Maddison12.30pm:Greens MP, Fuller clash over Porter probe
NSW Police chief Mick Fuller had a running battle with the MP during a heated budget estimates hearing. Read more here
Remy Varga 11.55am:Vic hotel quarantine costs taxpayers $400m
Victoria’s troubled hotel quarantine program has cost state taxpayers nearly $400 million.
According to the mid year financial report released on Friday, the state government in September 2020 entered into contracts with transport, health and hotel providers to provide the program for at least one year.
“The estimated total cost of the contracts is $377 million,” the report said.
With international flights stalled to Victoria for the foreseeable future, the contracted hotels are currently sitting empty.
READ MORE:UK variant more deadly: study
Richard Ferguson11.05am:PM denies ‘two-doses by October’ claims
Scott Morrison has denied suggestions his government has recently said all willing Australians would have two doses of the coronavirus vaccine by the end of October.
Health Department Secretary Brendan Murphy told a Senate hearing on Thursday that all Australians would likely have their first dose by October.
The deadline has been pushed out on two doses as the waiting time before the first and second shot of the AstraZeneca vaccine has been shifted from four to 12 weeks.
The Prime Minister - who is also acting health minister - said Health Minister Greg Hunt said the October deadline referred only to the first dose as early as last month.
“I totally reject that. We were clear a month ago that the October deadline would not include the second dose. The minister said that a month ago and that’s what Professor Murphy said yesterday,” he said in Sydney.
“What the government has said has been very clear and it was the move from four weeks to 12 weeks - which meant the second dose being completed by the end of October for all of those seeking them - that wasn’t going to be possible.”
Mr Hunt at a press conference in February said he would “look” at the timing when asked if the AstraZeneca waiting time would affect the October deadline.
“We’ll look at what it means in regards to the second dose ... it means a position where every Australian who seeks to have it will undoubtedly have had their first dose,” he said.
READ MORE:Dose of reality on vaccination target
Natasha Robinson11.01am:Australia’s vaccine rollout faces fresh hurdle
Australia’s vaccine rollout faces possible interruption with a major insurer of nurses “temporarily pausing” the issue of new policies for nurses who are participating in the COVID-19 vaccine program.
Guild Insurance, Australia’s biggest public liability insurer, says it is in talks with the Federal government “to secure essential support” for insured nurses.
“As we continue these discussions, we are focussed on delivering cover to our existing customers and have temporarily paused the issuing of new policies for nurses who are participating in the COVID-19 vaccine program,” said Guild Insurance’s deputy chief executive officer, Paul Cassidy. “Our aim is to reach successful resolution of our discussions withgovernment to enable us to extend cover sought by nurse practitioners who are not
already insured by us.”
Nurses who do not have the required professional indemnity cover are unable to administer vaccines as they would be in breach of their registration.
The chief executive officer of the Australian College of Nursing, Kylie Ward, said she would be concerned if COVID-19 vaccine administration was excluded from insurance cover.
“Any decision by insurers to not support nurses involved in the vaccine rollout has the potential to put the whole program at risk,” Adjunct Professor Ward said.
“The Australian College of Nursing condemns any insurer that would choose to put the Australian community at risk by not supporting nurses.
“Nurses are the most trusted profession, and among healthcare workers, and will be the largest provider of COVID-19 vaccinations to the Australian public.
“We see this as a direct threat to Australians receiving the vaccine and returning to a form of normal life post-COVID.
“The Australian College of Nursing will not work with any insurer who does not have the best interests of the public and the nursing profession, including nurse practitioners, at its core.”
Mr Cassidy said the insurance company’s focus was on working to ensure existing
healthcare practitioners had appropriate professional liability cover inplace to protect them when administrating the COVID-19 vaccines.
“We are in the process of contacting all existing customers to make changes to their
policy to ensure that they have the appropriate cover that protects them from risks they
face arising from the administration of the COVID-19 vaccine,” Mr Cassidy said.
Australia’s vaccine rollout already faces substantial delay as the federal government admits it may not be able to achieve its goal of having all Australians fully vaccinated by October.
Could be more insurers following, I believe it is specific to nurses and nurse practitioners, not other health professions, so far. It seems underwriters want the government to agree to pay for COVID vaccine related claims in relation to nurses. @GregHuntMP
— Leanne Boase NP (@Leanne_Boase) March 11, 2021
READ MORE:‘Impossible to know’ if vaccine target can be met
Richard Ferguson10.50am:Australia won’t halt AstraZeneca rollout: Morrison
Australia will not halt the rollout of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines after Denmark, Iceland and Norway halted their own inoculation programs.
The three Scandinavian countries stopped using AstraZeneca this week after reports of blood clots in some patients and one fatal case.
Scott Morrison said on Friday that Health Department Secretary Brendan Murphy has advised the AstraZeneca rollout in Australia continues.
“That is not the view of our medical advisors,” the Prime Minister said in Sydney.
“The TGA (Therapeutic Goods Administration) obviously looks at these reports when they come through, but they do their own batch testing.
“The batches that were made available going across Australia, there are some 300,000 doses, they are already out and being distributed from AstraZeneca.
“And there is another 400,000 that’s about to go out.”
READ MORE:AstraZeneca vaccine paused over blood clot fears
Ellie Dudley10.25am:No new local cases in Queensland, Victoria
Both Queensland and Victoria have recorded no new community transmitted cases of COVID-19.
Queensland recorded two new cases in overseas arrivals, while Victoria recorded none.
Friday 12 March – coronavirus cases in Queensland:
— Annastacia Palaszczuk (@AnnastaciaMP) March 11, 2021
• 0 new locally acquired
• 2 overseas acquired
• 40 active cases
• 1,375 total cases
• 2,027,655 tests conducted
Sadly, six Queenslanders with COVID-19 have died. 1,324 patients have recovered.#covid19pic.twitter.com/dfA2bvXRAu
Yesterday there were no new cases reported. 18,827 test results were received. Thank you to everyone who got tested - #EveryTestHelps.
— VicGovDH (@VicGovDH) March 11, 2021
More later: https://t.co/lIUrl0ZEco#COVID19Vic#COVID19VicDatapic.twitter.com/KK7k9bpS8x
Ellie Dudley9.55am:Borders cost Victoria in tourism package: Deputy PM
Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack has said Victoria does not deserve a larger share in the half-price flights announced by the federal government on Thursday, after criticisms that only one of the 13 regional areas that will benefit from the scheme was in Victoria.
Acting Premier James Merlino described the package as “unfair” on Thursday, adding that it was a “disappointing outcome” for Victoria.
Mr McCormack however said it was due to snap lockdowns in the southern state.
“Well, the Victorian government locked down their borders like that. At the drop of a hat. Hasty decisions. Locked borders when they had a couple of community outbreaks,” he told Melbourne reporters today.
“I appreciate last July it was difficult when there was that massive outbreak which cost the lives of more than 800 people.
“I know whatever we think and say about our premiers, they have done what they thought they needed to do to protect the people in their state. But it has come at a big cost.”
READ MORE:Un-fare support ‘a Qantas bailout’
Ellie Dudley9.46am:Deputy PM hopeful October target can be met
Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack has said the federal government still hopes for all adult Australians to be vaccinated against COVID-19 by October.
Scott Morrison has defended criticisms that Australia’s rollout of the vaccine has been off to a sluggish start, claiming the government are taking their time to ensure they are delivered safely.
Health department officials told a Senate inquiry on Thursday that supply constraints and the longer 12-week window between AstraZeneca doses meant some may have to wait until December to get their second shot.
However, Mr McCormack today said the government will continue to aim for their October target.
“There’s still the plan that’s still the hope,” he told reporters in Melbourne today.
“We have a plan. We’re rolling it out. We’re getting on with the job.
“It won’t go flawlessly all the way through. The Health Minister Greg Hunt has acknowledged that, the Prime Minister acknowledged that, but we do the very best we can.”
READ MORE:‘Impossible to know’ if vaccine target can be met
Ellie Dudley9.30am:Cormann left waiting: OECD unable to pick new leader
The new head of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development may not be declared for another month, after the group was unable to declare a clear winner after the fifth round of consultations.
Former Australian finance minister Mathias Cormann and former European trade commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom are the final two contenders for the position of secretary general of the Paris-based OECD.
A report by the OECD from the latest round of consultations, issued overnight, said the group was “unable to identify which candidate has the most support”.
“Following discussion with the selection committee, the chair’s conclusions were finalised and these were communicated first to the nominating ambassadors, and then to the heads of delegations in plenary,” the report read.
“Following these consultations, the chair has been unable to identify which candidate has the most support.”
Further steps will be taken to determine a winner in March, with the aim of concluding the process.
Ellie Dudley8.24am:‘It’s safe, worthwhile’: Premier backs AstraZeneca jab
Gladys Berejiklian has again voiced her support for the AstraZeneca vaccine, having received the jab this week.
Questions surrounding the safety of the vaccine have been raised today, after three Nordic countries blocked its rollout due to unforeseen pulmonary complications arising in people who had received the shot.
However, Ms Berejiklian has said the vaccination is still completely safe and has urged Australians to get it “as soon as it’s available”.
“It’s safe, and it’s really worthwhile,” she told 2GB this morning.
The federal government has been criticised for a slower-than-expected rollout of the COVID-19 vaccines, which they attribute to Europe’s blocked supply chain.
Ms Berejiklian said she was “confident we will catch up”.
“NSW is doing really, really well,” she said, referencing the three-week, 35,000 jab target she expects the state to meet this week.
“We want to make sure we get the vaccine into the arms of everyone as soon as we can, because that means freedom.”
Mr Berejiklian said while she had a sore arm and felt a little bit tired after receiving the shot, “that’s to be expected”.
READ MORE:Dose of reality on vaccination target
Ellie Dudley8.09am:Joyce on tourism package, return of international travel
Qantas CEO Alan Joyce has disputed claims that airlines are the only section of the tourism supply chain to benefit from the $1.2 billion funding package the federal government announced yesterday.
The package was announced to assist the ailing tourism sector, and includes 800,000 half price flight tickets, a recovery loan scheme for eligible businesses and an aviation plan to help airlines keep up to 8600 employees in work.
Mr Joyce said the money Qantas receives will assist the whole supply chain.
“The money we get from the government we pass on to the consumer so they can make a trip, and it encourages more people to travel than would have otherwise,” he told today.
“It gets them into places like Cairns, to use hotels, to use cafes, to go on tour operators which wouldn’t happen.”
Mr Joyce said that while he believes the package will “protect jobs”, there is still uncertainty of when the aviation sector will return to normal.
“We don’t know when the vaccine is going to completely rollout. We don’t know if the new variants will make a difference,” he said.
“I don’t think there’s any airline CEO in the world that can guarantee there won’t be future job losses.”
The federal government has planned for Australia’s international borders to reopen in October this year, but Mr Joyce said a number of requirements will be necessary to allow for free-flowing travel.
“What we need to see when they do open up I think is that the hotel quarantine isn’t a requirement,” he said.
“We think there will be a requirement for people to show they have been vaccinated … to leave the country and to come in.”
READ MORE: What about us? Fury in towns that missed out
Ellie Dudley7.51am:‘Frustrated’ Premier wants more cheap NSW flights
Gladys Berejiklian has said she is “disappointed” in the federal government’s decision to discount more flights to Queensland than they did to New South Wales.
The federal government announced yesterday that they will subsidise a 50 per cent discount on domestic fares to 13 tourism-dependent regions, in attempts to help the ailing tourism sector.
While only one of the regions is in NSW – Merimbula – five are in Queensland, sparking criticism of the scheme from the NSW Premier.
“That is frustrating,” she told 2GB this morning. “Especially because I think the tourism problems in Queensland are completely self-inflicted.”
She highlighted Sydney as the place in NSW that has been “smashed” by COVID-19 the hardest.
While she said regional areas “have had it tough for a long time”, they are beginning to recover due to a recent spike in intrastate travel.
READ MORE: Un-fare support ‘a Qantas bailout’
Ellie Dudley7.35am:‘This is a safe vaccine’: Dutton downplays jab fears
Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton has downplayed the suggestion that the AstraZeneca vaccine is unsafe, despite three Nordic countries blocking the rollout of the jab due to unforeseen complications.
Denmark, Iceland and Norway have all “paused” using the AstraZeneca vaccine from Thursday following issues that may have caused a death in Denmark and other reports of adverse pulmonary embolisms and blood clotting.
Mr Dutton said the government will “wait and see the evidence” but said all current medical advice says to continue with the rollout.
“The fact is the virus needs to be dealt with,” he told Today.
“If there’s a problem the government responds very quickly. At the moment the advice very clearly from the doctors is that this is a safe vaccine and we want the rollout to continue.”
READ MORE:AstraZeneca vaccine paused over blood clot fears
Ellie Dudley7.22am:AstraZeneca jab still safe despite Euro pause: expert
An Australian infectious disease physician has deemed the AstraZeneca vaccine still “safe” despite large-scale blocks on its rollout in Europe due to unforeseen issues.
Nordic countries have stopped distributing the AstraZeneca vaccination following rare complications that may have caused a death in Denmark and other reports of adverse pulmonary embolisms and blood clotting.
Denmark, Iceland and Norway have all “paused” using the AstraZeneca vaccine from Thursday while the adverse serious events are investigated for any links to the jabs.
However, Professor Peter Collignon from the Australian National University said that while the issues should be investigated, current evidence does not indicate the jab is unsafe.
“No vaccine will be 100 per cent without side effect,” he told Today.
“The good news about these vaccines so far is that both the Pfizer one and the AstraZeneca don’t seem to have serious side effects more than any other vaccine you see.”
Professor Collignon disputed the suggestion that because Australia doesn’t have uncontrolled transmission of COVID-19 the country should hold off on vaccinations.
“The big advantage we have in Australia is we don’t have uncontrolled or transmission at the moment,” he said.
“That may change. Winter is coming. We need to vaccinate the people most at risk particularly the risk of dying which is those over the age of 70.”
He added that he will be getting the AstraZeneca jab in the next month.
READ MORE:AstraZeneca vaccine paused over blood clot fears
Ellie Dudley6.50am:SA cancels three ANZAC services
South Australia’s three largest suburban Dawn Services have been cancelled due to organisers being unable to meet COVID-19 restrictions.
The decision was made to cancel the services in Brighton, Semaphore and Morphett Vale – which attract 30,000 people collectively – late Thursday.
RSL state president Cheryl Cates said they would not go ahead, as the volunteer organisers would have been forced to hire barriers they could not afford to control crowd numbers and meet COVID-safe requirements.
“We don’t want to go backwards with COVID,” Mrs Cates told the Adelaide Advertiser.
“We’re all trying to do the right thing for our veterans because they are ageing.”
Anzac Day commemorations will still commence in the Adelaide CBD this year, but will be scaled back in line with COVID-safe plans.
READ MORE:In thrust we trust
Ellie Dudley 6.30am:Biden signs $1.9 trillion Covid stimulus bill into law
Joe Biden has signed a sweeping trillion-dollar COVID-19 stimulus package into law, in the hopes to both boost domestic growth and spur global recovery.
“This historic legislation is about rebuilding the backbone of this country and giving people in this nation, working people, middle class folks, people who built the country, a fighting chance,” the US President said in the Oval Office before signing the legislation.
“That’s what the essence of it is.”
The package will inject $1.9 trillion in aid into the pandemic-damaged economy by funding small businesses, extending unemployment benefits that were due to expire in days, and sending direct payments of as much as $1,400 to many Americans starting this month.
The Biden administration also continues to ramp up the vaccination efforts across the country, with $14 billion dedicated to the research, development, distribution and administering of vaccines.
So far, 95.7 million Americans have received the COVID-19 jab.
More than 529,400 Americans have died from the virus as of Friday morning (AEDT), according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
READ MORE:Congress gives Biden his first win
Ellie Dudley 6.20am:Kiwis free to travel to Oz from today
New Zealanders will recommence travel to Australia from today, after Auckland was declared to be no longer a hotspot.
About 1.7 million Auckland residents were forced into a week-long lockdown earlier in the month, which was imposed to contain a cluster of the more transmissible UK COVID-19 variant.
Australian Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly on Tuesday said the situation in New Zealand had “improved greatly” with minimal risk remaining from the country’s cluster.
“The Australian Government will continue to work closely with colleagues in the New Zealand Ministry of Health to monitor and assess the public health risk posed by COVID-19,” the health department said.
The travel bubble remains a one-way situation for now, with Australians still unable to travel over the ditch without quarantining.
READ MORE:Uni list to protect against foreign interference
Jacquelin Magnay 5.45am: What happens when you get the jab
When I got called up for my coronavirus jab last Saturday – via a sudden text message on my phone from the doctor’s surgery in London – I was mightily impressed by the ruthless efficiency of the logistics and that the inoculation itself felt like a mere scratch on my arm.
I turned to the nurse and remarked; “Is that it?’’ I had thought the tiny prick I had felt was her swabbing the site in preparation for the needle. Not so, it really doesn’t hurt.
A team of volunteers at the health centre had provided the paperwork, checked the details and despite a queue of a couple of dozen people, within five minutes I was rolling up my sleeve in one of ten curtained off areas in a big room. I had worked out I was somewhere around the 22 to 23 millionth person in Britain to get the vaccine, some three months after the rollout began.
It was only when sitting down about to get the jab that I was told I was getting the AstraZeneca vaccine.
About two minutes after the inoculation I felt a weird sensation draining through my body, almost like going into a state of shock. I had a quiet sit down for half an hour with another woman who was also feeling a bit faint, and all was fine – for a few hours.
By that afternoon I was so exhausted I couldn’t get off the couch. By the evening I was both feverish and shaking all over with uncontrolled chills. My entire body felt alternatively frozen and then on fire. I cranked the heating up, popped some Panadol, glugged water and crawled into bed with a violent headache.
On Sunday I couldn’t walk the dog without frequent rests, my body ached as if I had been run over by a truck, and the headache nastily persisted all day.
Some 36 hours after my jab I was still feeling peculiar and exhausted but by the 48 hour mark I was starting to feel much better.
Unfortunately I can’t compare this to a flu jab as I have never had one.
But I have taken some consolation that the more extreme the reaction, the more antibodies are produced to help my body fight off the coronavirus. A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study also found that women have more side effects from the coronavirus vaccine than men, and younger people also have a stronger response.
But I would have loved to have had a one jab version of the vaccine for in three months time I will have to go through this again.
And of course, having just written about European countries concerns about particular batches of the AstraZeneca vaccine and a sudden pause of its distribution. I immediately checked the slip of paper that details the batch number I have been given. Thankfully it wasn’t ABV5300 or ABV2856.
READ MORE:Dose of reality on rollout target
Jacquelin Magnay5.05am:AstraZeneca vaccine paused over blood clot fears
Nordic countries have stopped distributing the AstraZeneca vaccine following rare complications that may have caused a death in Denmark and amid other reports of adverse pulmonary embolisms and blood clotting.
Denmark, Iceland and Norway have “paused” the AstraZeneca vaccine while the serious adverse events are investigated for any links to the jabs.
Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Luxembourg and Austria have also stopped using one batch of the vaccine, ABV5300, pending a probe in relation to a separate death in Austria of a woman with “severe blood coagulation problems” and some blood clotting episodes in others. This particular batch of a million doses was distributed across 17 European countries.
The sudden halt in using the AstraZeneca vaccine in the Nordic countries could cause a loss of confidence in the vaccine. The development comes as Australia plans to increasingly turn to the locally produced AstraZeneca vaccine, made in Melbourne, within weeks. A batch of 250,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine destined for Australia was stopped following an export ban by Italy to reserve more vaccine for its own use.
Read the full story here.
Rosie Lewis4.40am:Sydney, Melb ‘left for dead’ in cheap travel plan
A $1.2bn Morrison government package to supercharge domestic travel has been rejected by the tourism and hospitality industries, which say it will fail to prevent hundreds of thousands of job losses while favouring major airlines over the rest of the supply chain.
After a months-long wait for the government to outline post-JobKeeper support, there was broad condemnation and confusion about the stimulus unveiled, with industry saying it was too narrow and would “leave Sydney and Melbourne for dead”.
The centrepiece of the package will see Australians offered 800,000 half-priced airfares to more than a dozen regional centres from April, while cheap loans will be provided to small and medium businesses coming off the $90bn wage subsidy scheme on March 28.
Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack stressed other towns and cities would be added to the list of 13 destinations that will receive visitors on half-price flights, as Northern Territory senator Sam McMahon revealed she had managed to include Darwin in the package. Adelaide also made the cut.
Read the full story, by Rosie Lewis and Robyn Ironside, here.
Patrick Commins4.30am:Employment at risk as CBDs left ‘abandoned’
Struggling businesses in Australia’s CBDs have emerged as the biggest losers in the Morrison government’s targeted support package, with warnings that the end of JobKeeper will trigger a new round of retrenchments in hotel and accommodation staff.
The closure of international borders, the collapse of business travel and a plunge in the number of commuters has damaged the country’s city centres.
With a lack of CBD-specific assistance in the Morrison government’s package of support measures aimed at helping COVID-affected industries and regions survive the end of JobKeeper, Accommodation Association chief executive Dean Long said the government had abandoned city hotels that continued to struggle with a collapse in international and business customers.
Read the full story here.
Natasha Robinson4.15am:COVID-19 vaccine program may extend into 2022
A 3.1 million dose shortfall in vaccine supplies and a revolt from doctors over inoculation payments threatens to push the completion of the nation’s COVID-19 immunisation program into the early part of next year.
Despite assurances from the federal government that the rollout was on track, Health Department secretary Brendan Murphy conceded Scott Morrison’s October target for the full rollout of the vaccine program was in jeopardy and some people might have to wait until 2022 to receive their second dose.
“We don’t know if we will be able to deliver two doses by the end of October,” Professor Murphy told a Senate committee hearing on Thursday. He said it was “impossible” to know when the first phase, originally due to be finalised by the end of March and targeted at those most exposed to the virus, would be completed.
Read the full story, by Natasha Robinson and Richard Ferguson, here.
Additional reporting: Rosie Lewis, Robyn Ironside
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