The COVID-19 vaccine rollout in Australia has begun

[JB expat]

Potentially a legal issue is in what form the mandatory vaccination requirements are implemented - because if they are public health orders then it might be an issue that mandatory vaccination is beyond the normal expected boundaries of which public health orders are designed for generally. I guess most pre-covid vaccination requirements are in workplace agreements or employment contracts.

Safework place obligations have nothing to do with contractual agreements but are obligations imposed by regulation on employers. It also doesn't necessarily have to be pursuant to a public health order. It is a broad obligation that needs to be met. How you go about meeting it is where there may be different approaches, but in terms of COVID, the vaccine mandate is a very reasonable tool in the tool kit for meeting such obligation under many circumstances (even office jobs where seating is open plan for example). It wouldn't be the sole tool that employers need to use, but would be used in combination with other measures to meet the safe workplace obligation.

 

[drron]

The increase in vaccinations in Aged Care workers is to be expected.All Governments have given the same deadline for ACW to have their first vaccination-17/9.

The direction provides that, on and after 17 September 2021, the following persons are not permitted to enter, or remain on, the premises of a residential aged care facility unless the person is sufficiently vaccinated against the disease:

• persons employed, or engaged, by or on behalf of the residential aged care facility, regardless of whether consideration is paid or payable for the employment or engagement;
• persons undertaking a clinical placement, or work experience, at the residential aged care facility; and
• persons employed, or engaged, by or on behalf of the residential aged care facility, to provide services, other than maintenance services (ie trades persons and gardeners who provide services on an ad hoc basis), in respect of the residential aged care facility or one or more residents of the residential aged care facility, regardless of whether consideration is paid or payable for the employment or engagement.

This means that from 17 September, aged care workers must have received at least one dose of vaccine and made a booking for their second, or have made a booking to receive their first dose and provide evidence of the booking to the operator of the aged care facility where they are employed.

Latest news

www.premier.tas.gov.au

 

[mviy]

Tomorrow's Front Page

The Advertiser: "Don't Wait For Pfizer" - "ScoMo's clear vax message to everyone aged over 60" - "Australians aged over 60 are being urged to get the AstraZeneca vaccine now or end up at the back of the queue when Pfizer supply ramps up. A new wave of Pfizer jabs is expected to arrive in October, but the supply will be prioritised for the 9.8 million people aged between 12 and 39. Scott Morrison, Health Minister Greg Hunt and Australia's chief medical officer Professor Paul Kelly will next week send a letter to 586,713 people aged between 60-69, who are yet to be vaccinated, urging them to take action."

This story might also be on the front page of the Herald Sun as "No Pfizer fallback"

 

[hydrabyss]

The increase in vaccinations in Aged Care workers is to be expected.All Governments have given the same deadline for ACW to have their first vaccination-17/9.

Latest news

www.premier.tas.gov.au

This is going to be interesting for what happens on the 17th. I know casual staff will be easy as my partner tells me a staff member she knows has no hours currently.

But the permanent staff I gather will just get a termination letter leading up to this date.

Hopefully they won't be too understaffed but I see this as unavoidable as many staff are off for being a casual contact at a covid exposure site.

 

[Must...Fly!]

Telstra next to roll out incentives. With a humorous little video to go along with it!

https://twitter.com/x/status/1433191938497282051

#LetsVaxx: our plan to reward customers

We will be rewarding those who roll up their sleeves, and encouraging everyone to get vaccinated for the good of the nation.

exchange.telstra.com.au

 

[hydrabyss]

NSW have already mandated this. If your work onsite at a school (Early Childhood, Primary and Highschool) you need to be fully vacinated, that is teachers, teachers aids, the tuckshop ladies, cleaners etc by 8th Nov.

From the week starting September 6, education staff (including early childhood education staff) will be prioritised for vaccinations at Qudos Bank Arena at Sydney Olympic Park.

A recent survey of the Department of Education which had over 50,000 responses found almost 80 per cent of staff had already had one dose and close to 40 per cent were fully vaccinated.

Is it fully vaccinated or one dose by that date. Unless you cut your second AZ dose shorter by a month this will lead many with an issue to be fully vaccinated by then.

I gather there will be other prioritised vaccination centres outside of Sydney.

 

[Seat0B]

Is it fully vaccinated or one dose by that date. Unless you cut your second AZ dose shorter by a month this will lead many with an issue to be fully vaccinated by then.

I gather there will be other prioritised vaccination centres outside of Sydney.

It’s only the first dose required by that date

COVID-19 vaccination for residential aged care workers

When you get vaccinated, you are protecting yourself and the people you care for from COVID-19.

www.health.gov.au

 

[HappyFlyerFamily]

This is going to be interesting for what happens on the 17th. I know casual staff will be easy as my partner tells me a staff member she knows has no hours currently.

But the permanent staff I gather will just get a termination letter leading up to this date.

Hopefully they won't be too understaffed but I see this as unavoidable as many staff are off for being a casual contact at a covid exposure site.

I hear more mandatory "games" happening - essentially smoke and mirrors.

I didn't know for example mandatory flu vaccinations were only for some high-risk healthcare hospital settings (ie not all). So good luck to NSW with the "mandatory covid vaccination policy for public and hospital, aged care and education settings" (and for clarity I'm allowing for the medical contraindication exception).

I'm sure some businesses will start playing games to "appear" mandatory with respect to staff and customers.

 

[Lynda2475]

It’s only the first dose required by that date

No it isnt, teachers need to be fully vaccinated in NSW by Nov 8. Most of the teachers currently unvaccinated in NSW are under 40 so will get Pfizer. If they sign up for first shot on 6th Sept at Qudos, there will be zero issue being fully vaxxed by 8 Nov. If they opt for AZ, they still make it as AZ doses are given at 6-8 weeks in NSW.

The aged care mandate was national and is first dose by mid Sept, which was frankly way too late since that cohort has been eligible for 6 months already. But teacher mandate is NSW only at this stage.

 

[HappyFlyerFamily]

Is it fully vaccinated or one dose by that date. Unless you cut your second AZ dose shorter by a month this will lead many with an issue to be fully vaccinated by then.

I gather there will be other prioritised vaccination centres outside of Sydney.

For some sectors, there is only a mandate on the first dose. For other sectors there is a mandate on both doses. For further other sectors its a mandate on the first dose and an appointment for the second dose.

The NSW Government can't come up with one formula.

 

[Lynda2475]

I gather there will be other prioritised vaccination centres outside of Sydney.

Nothing announced, but based on age all teachers are eligible for a jab, so can also book at other state hubs or RCs or GPs, or if willing to risk AZ go to a pharmac_. Teachers in the 12 LGAs of concern have already had priority access for a month.

 

[Lynda2475]

For some sectors, there is only a mandate on the first dose. For other sectors there is a mandate on both doses. For further other sectors its a mandate on the first dose and an appointment for the second dose.

The NSW Government can't come up with one formula.

The first jab for aged and healthcare workers cames from Feds, NSW is just complying (as should all the other states, although it was reported last week some hadnt enacted legislationto enforde it yet, despite being announced with 12 weeks notice), it was not their timeframe.

Whereas when NSW initiate a ruling it is for both doses i.e. teachers.

Its better that NSW directives are for two doses, as full protection is what is needed. About 20% of hospitalisations are for people with only one dose.

The inconsistencies come from different governments.

 

[mviy]

If they opt for AZ, they still make it as AZ doses are given at 6-8 weeks in NSW.

If VIC numbers continue to climb rapidly I suspect there's likely to be a decision made soon to recommend AZ second doses are given much earlier than the 12 weeks in VIC as well. I'm currently between 8 and 9 weeks so if I was in NSW I would have had the second dose by now.

I'm in a LGA with very few (if any) cases, but the state case rises suggest the outbreak in VIC is getting out of control.

With 8 weeks between Pfizer doses in NSW you can get fully vaccinated sooner with AZ, a better vaccine that provides longer lasting protection.

 

[Must...Fly!]

Well the problem with mandatory vaccines is some do not like being told what to do (fair enough) and some can't see the benefit through their desire to rail against the directive.

For the most part, the teachers we spoke to were not against vaccinations per se but were not happy about this vaccination regime at this time. ‘I have been weighing the pros and cons, and for now, have decided to be cautious and not risk vaccination at this time,’ said the Lismore teacher. ‘I am in good health generally and trust my immune system. I may change my mind down the track when we have more data about the safety and efficacy of the vaccines.’

One of the Byron teachers said they were open to potentially getting vaccinations that will be available at a later date. ‘I will not have Pfizer or AstraZeneca vaccines injected into my body, no matter how much they try to control my life or coerce my decisions, I will not cave into their demands.’

Teachers have a mixed response to news of mandatory vaccinations

We rely on our school teachers to help educate our children – five days a week we send them off before 9am and don’t see them again until after 3pm, trusting that they have nurtured thousands upon thousands of little minds, bodies and hearts. For the absolute most part, Australia’s teachers are...

www.echo.net.au

The opinions quoted above are widespread, I work with several people who have the exact same beliefs.

 

[HappyFlyerFamily]

If VIC numbers continue to climb rapidly I suspect there's likely to be a decision made soon to recommend AZ second doses are given much earlier than the 12 weeks in VIC as well. I'm currently between 8 and 9 weeks so if I was in NSW I would have had the second dose by now.

I'm in a LGA with very few (if any) cases, but the state case rises suggest the outbreak in VIC is getting out of control.

With 8 weeks between Pfizer doses in NSW you can get fully vaccinated sooner with AZ, a better vaccine that provides longer lasting protection.

Small point - I think Pfizer is 3-6 weeks, not 8 weeks.

 

[HappyFlyerFamily]

Well the problem with mandatory vaccines is some do not like being told what to do (fair enough) and some can't see the benefit through their desire to rail against the directive.

Teachers have a mixed response to news of mandatory vaccinations

We rely on our school teachers to help educate our children – five days a week we send them off before 9am and don’t see them again until after 3pm, trusting that they have nurtured thousands upon thousands of little minds, bodies and hearts. For the absolute most part, Australia’s teachers are...

www.echo.net.au

The opinions quoted above are widespread, I work with several people who have the exact same beliefs.

Yep and as a result cottage industries to get around mandatory vaccination requirements will start popping up.

 

[Lynda2475]

With 8 weeks between Pfizer doses in NSW

Please stop spreading this myth, it is still possinle to get 2nd dose at 3 weeks via GP or hub (if you booked at the hub before end of July) and the hubs are now booking second doses at 4 weeks for any priority workers. I know several teachers in LGAs of concern who had dose one last week at Qudos, whose second appointment is on 20th September, for everyone else is 6 weeks default, unless they choose a later date. 8 weeks is maximum wait, not the norm at all.

Vic is doing 6 week Pfizer gap too.

AZ is not necessarily the faster route, unless you are 60+.

 

[Must...Fly!]

Small point - I think Pfizer is 3-6 weeks, not 8 weeks.

Pfizer can be up to 12 weeks (or more, in theory).

The recommended interval between two doses for Comirnaty is 21 to 42 days (3 - 6 weeks). The recommended interval between two doses for Spikevax is 28 to 42 days (4 - 6 weeks). This interval range allows time for logistical considerations, including supply and timing of access to vaccine at the individual and clinic levels, and is extrapolated from data on the intervals applied in clinical trial

Although Comirnaty and Spikevax may provide partial protection against COVID-19 as soon as 12 days after the first dose, this protection is likely to be short lived. A two-dose course is recommended for optimal protectio

ATAGI advises that the absolute minimum interval between the first and second dose for the second dose to be considered as acceptable and valid as fully vaccinated in the Australian Immunisation Register (AIR) is 14 days. The immune response and clinical protection with this shortened interval may be sub-optimal. If two doses have inadvertently been given at a shorter than the minimum acceptable interval, it is not currently recommended that a vaccine dose is repeated. There is still a likelihood of clinical protection in that individual in the short term. ATAGI will provide further guidance on repeat doses after an unacceptably short interval when more information about the use of a third dose becomes available.

Longer intervals between first and second doses of Comirnaty or Spikevax, e.g., 8-12 weeks may need to be recommended during program rollout if epidemiological considerations warrant a change (e.g., during an outbreak response to ensure available doses are provided as first doses to as many people as possible). This requires local decision-making taking into account information on supply, logistics and disease epidemiolog

If the second dose of Comirnaty or Spikevax is administered later than the recommended interval, no further doses are required.

https://www.health.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/2021/08/covid-19-vaccination-atagi-clinical-guidance-on-covid-19-vaccine-in-australia-in-2021.pdf

 

[mviy]

Please stop spreading this myth, it is still possinle to get 2nd dose at 3 weeks via GP and the hubs are booking second doses at 4 weeks for any priority workers...8 weeks is maximum wait, not the norm at all.

It's not a myth. For the general population who should be getting vaccinated, not just priority workers, there's an 8 week gap between Pfizer doses at NSW state hubs.

Well HSC students for example are being told it's an 8 week gap between doses: HSC student vaccinations within identified LGAs

Getting it at a GP is good if you are eligible and can get a booking. The GPs are not getting supplied with enough doses. If you can get AZ now in NSW but have to wait weeks for a Pfizer booking at a GP, it's an obvious decision to get AZ.

Small point - I think Pfizer is 3-6 weeks, not 8 weeks.

I was talking about NSW. NSW state hubs are doing second doses later than the recommended 6 weeks due to the desire to get first doses into as many arms as possible and that supplies are not being diverted from other states to meet the high demand in NSW.

NSW first doses for 16+ are 69.26% versus the national average of 59.62%. However for second doses the gap is much smaller 37.84% vs 35.74% respectively. The second dose gap will widen, but you can see that the bulk of what's happening in NSW is prioritising getting as many people as possible first doses.

 

[HappyFlyerFamily]

Pfizer can be up to 12 weeks (or more, in theory).

https://www.health.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/2021/08/covid-19-vaccination-atagi-clinical-guidance-on-covid-19-vaccine-in-australia-in-2021.pdf

Thanks I didn't know this, so is the current recommendation for Pfizer in NSW 12 weeks?