General COVID-19 Vaccine Discussion

[HappyFlyerFamily]

Whether it is too slow or too fast, I am at a loss to understand why those working in the Covid ward of a major hospital dealing with positive cases amongst returning travellers have not yet been vaccinated and thus now result in another community transmission outbreak.

Go as slow as the agreements and supply will permit, but not prioritising those working in quarantine roles above all others... am I missing something here?

How about adding that it doesn’t seem to be daily testing or shift testing of these same workers working with positive patients?!?!

 

[MEL_Traveller]

The government had arranged for the Pfizer and Oxford vaccines to be delivered from January 2021.That was in the contracts they signed.By now there were meant to be 3.8 million doses of the Oxford and 1 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine delivered.So your premise is wrong.

The other countries had only Emergency Authorisations for the vaccines at first.We did not have an Emergency so the right Health decision was to wait for the Conditional Authorisation.There have been many vaccines and drugs who have been used under Emergency Authorisation that have not gone on to General use because of problems.Remember the FDA in the USA gave Emergency Authorisation to HCQ.

Whether or not we have an 'emergency' seems to change depending on the spin of the government. We have an 'emergency' in terms of banning Aussies leaving, or coming home. Yet no emergency when it comes to the roll out of the vaccine? And supposedly no emergency - according to the Cth - when states want to close borders? It feels a bit rough to have it both ways.

 

[jakeseven7]

Whether it is too slow or too fast, I am at a loss to understand why those working in the Covid ward of a major hospital dealing with positive cases amongst returning travellers have not yet been vaccinated and thus now result in another community transmission outbreak.

Go as slow as the agreements and supply will permit, but not prioritising those working in quarantine roles above all others... am I missing something here?

Because the QLD government has not made it compulsory for those workers. Sorry everyone, love Qld.

 

[drron]

Oh dear.We did not have a Covid Emergency as we didn't continue to have hundreds or thousands dying each day.
And to being laughed at for saying the Government wasn't too slow in considering purchasing the vaccine how do the detractors explain this piece of evidence?

November 8, 2020, Melbourne — CSL Limited (ASX:CSL) CSL today confirmed it will commence manufacturing the University of Oxford/AstraZeneca AZD1222 COVID-19 vaccine candidate at its advanced manufacturing facility in Broadmeadows, Victoria, on Monday 9th November.


CSL has separate contracts with AstraZeneca and the Australian Government to manufacture approximately 30 million doses of the AZD1222 vaccine candidate, with first doses planned for release in the first half of 2021, pending the outcome of clinical trials and regulatory approval.


The manufacturing process will start with the thaw of vials containing vaccine cells. The cells - frozen under liquid nitrogen to preserve their integrity - need to be thawed in preparation for replication in the bioreactors at the company’s Broadmeadows facility. After growing in the bioreactors, the vaccine is then filtered and purified leaving just the antigen, or vaccine product. It is then ready for final formulation and filling into dosage vials.


The vial thaw milestone follows several months of close collaboration and preparation by CSL and AstraZeneca technical experts. During 2020/2021, CSL will manufacture eight large scale batches of vaccine drug substance. Should the vaccine demonstrate its safety and efficacy in clinical trials that are currently underway, it is anticipated that it will require a two dose per person regime.

Global Newsroom | CSL

www.csl.com

I have previously posted in this thread how a phase 1 trial for the Oxford vaccine was done here in Australia.The results were reported in August 2020.
The Australian Government invested some $363 million in the research for Covid vaccines - predominantly the UQ and Oxford vaccines.As the CSL news release said CSL was in discussion with AZ for many months before the actual start of production in early November last year and had agreements in place with AZ and the Australian Government for the production of the vaccine here.Proof that the Government was working to procure vaccines here very early in the course of the pandemic.

The counter argument is purely spin.

 

[trevella]

Australia had its last COVID-19 death about three months ago, I believe. And about a month before that, and a month before that. So something like four in the last five months.

Understandable, perhaps, that some want a vaccine rolled out quickly to protect you all from your own state governments. But that is a crisis of bad management, not a crisis of public health. I wouldn't be too hopeful about vaccine rollouts saving you from the former.

 

[serfty]

[moderator hat]

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[mod hat]

Narky tit-for-tat comments are definitely *not* in the spirit of AFF. If you can’t be “helpful” then “unhelpful” infractions might change your mind.​

[/mod hat]​

Some posts have needed to be removed/trimmed due to non compliance. Any further such will elicit sanction.​

[/moderator hat]

 

[Pushka]

Alarmingly our premier in SA stated that lack of immunisation was not the reason why SA shut the border yesterday. I guess he wants people to spend Easter and school holidays in SA. Again.

 

[DC3]

Why was it too slow ...

Our leaders would need to explain that.

 

[drron]

They have indeed explained that it wasn't too slow with actual manufacturing of the Oxford vaccine having started in Melbourne in early November 2020 after months of negotiations and funding of the developement of the Oxford vaccine.

 

[DC3]

They have indeed explained that it wasn't too slow with actual manufacturing of the Oxford vaccine having started in Melbourne in early November 2020 after months of negotiations and funding of the developement of the Oxford vaccine.

Not sure of the source of all that. There was never any urgency displayed. Although some pollies got to the front of the line with limited supplies of our vax. All in 1a?

 

[drron]

Not sure of the source of all that. There was never any urgency displayed. Although some pollies got to the front of the line with limited supplies of our vax. All in 1a?

See post 564 for the source of all that.

 

[DC3]

See post 564 for the source of all that.

Well, I must admit that my interest in that post fell away after reading where concerns were expressed at being laughed at (perhaps believing it to be mockery).

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Not sure of the source of all that. There was never any urgency displayed. Although some pollies got to the front of the line with limited supplies of our vax. All in 1a?

Agree there seems to be little urgency. Instead of 'we can't approve it in time', 'we can't roll it out in time' and 'international supplies have been disrupted', we get told that rolling out any faster would have been dangerous and 'not safe'. (Given the TGA approved the vaccine without amendment, that seems to imply the vaccine was safe.)

There are lots of elements that seem to be slowing us down... the time and expense to build individual cubicles at mass vaccination centres? UK seems happy with open spaces. Roll out through GPs? So slow my pop just went and got a same day appointment offered at a council centre. (Acknowledge some individuals may need the specialist advice from their GP, but why slow down the rest?)

Maybe they are going as fast as possible and we're matching the standards of speed in other countries... but then it comes down to a lack of communication telling us 'why'.

 

[Pushka]

They have indeed explained that it wasn't too slow with actual manufacturing of the Oxford vaccine having started in Melbourne in early November 2020 after months of negotiations and funding of the developement of the Oxford vaccine.

The issue isn’t availability. That has been explained. What is at issue is the distribution of vaccines that has occurred and actual dispensing of it into where it needs to go.

 

[drron]

The issue isn’t availability. That has been explained. What is at issue is the distribution of vaccines that has occurred and actual dispensing of it into where it needs to go.

No the locally produced Oxford vaccine is only hitting full numbers this week with some available last week.We have had far fewer doses than was meant to have been delivered prior to local manufacture coming on line.

 

[DC3]

The issue isn’t availability. That has been explained. What is at issue is the distribution of vaccines that has occurred and actual dispensing of it into where it needs to go.

Yes, this is an issue. And it seems so hush hush.

 

[Pushka]

No the locally produced Oxford vaccine is only hitting full numbers this week with some available last week.We have had far fewer doses than was meant to have been delivered prior to local manufacture coming on line.

We aren’t getting through the vaccines we have already.

 

[DC3]

We aren’t getting through the vaccines we have already.

Sloooooooowly. Because there’s no ‘emergency’ perhaps.

 

[Lynda2475]

Pfizer, Moderna COVID-19 vaccines highly effective after first shot, study finds

The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines reduced the risk of infection by 80 per cent two weeks or more after the first of two shots, according to data from a new real-world US study.

www.abc.net.au

Hopefully those states who havent yet vaccinated all their HQ program and hospital Covid ward workers, will ensure the rest get pfizer this week.

 

[DC3]

Coronavirus vaccine Phase 1b rollout frustrating Australian GP clinics​

GPs frustrated with coronavirus vaccine shortage and poor communication

An online eligibility checker for the coronavirus vaccine directs people to call GP clinics in their area but some providers are being caught off guard, some were left of the list and all have too few doses to meet demand.

www.abc.net.au

Reported on 19th March