The COVID-19 vaccine rollout in Australia has begun

[Pushka]

A Medicare refund isn't anywhere near an incentive because it's done at tax time and really just a paperwork thing. Not tangible enough.

 

[Flying mermaid]

Another reason why those most needing Pfizer are still waiting:

Ineligible people receive Pfizer vaccine in Canberra after ‘unauthorised’ text

The ACT Health Minister accused those who received the vaccine of skipping the queue after a booking hotline for frontline workers was widely distributed.

www.smh.com.au

Our ACT health minister is a total Wally who I suspect has little idea of what is going on in her portfolio . She is claiming in some reports I have seen that they are filling up appointments for those who need and are eligible very rapidly so nothing is going to waste.

Ms FM has a friend who has a daughter who had a liver transplant but is too young to be vaccinated, so Mum is eligible to get vaccinated as she is a carer who needs to protect her daughter, but being under 50 she needs the Pfizer. Her GP gave her the magic number and she phoned up and got the message that it’s only for front line workers at the moment, so hung up. Ms FM talked to her on Tuesday, told her to ignore the message and she got through to a real person and was vaccinated on Tuesday with Pfizer. No queue jumping, totally eligible, but because of the silly message wasn’t getting to talk to the right people. Lots of appointments and lots of vaccine, but eligible people aren’t being vaccinated because of the bureaucracy getting in the way.

 

[Lynda2475]

A Medicare refund

Not a refund but an extra Medicare levy (tax). And they do work if you look at health insurance.

Right now everyone pays a set medicare levy, but if you earn above a certain salary you pay an extra 1% (which can easily be a couple of $k) if you dont have private health insurance. Higher income earners will mostly rather get health insurance and avoid paying extra $ to government. Its actually a great incentive for the employed, takes pressure off public hospitals for elective surgery.

Of course for those on low incomes or benefits, need to use another tax mechanism i.e. a once off bonus payment once fully vaccinated (also stimulates the economy).

These dont operate in isolation, need to be combined with HQ free travel privileges and other items to be comprehensive suite of reasons to get a jab.

 

[Pushka]

These dont operate in isolation, need to be combined with HQ free travel privileges and other items to be comprehensive suite of reasons to get a jab.

Agree then, in conjunction with other considerations but on its own the Medicare rebate/refund isnt enough.

 

[Lynda2475]

Agree then, in conjunction with other considerations but on its own the Medicare rebate/refund isnt enough.

But it helps hit those 40% who dont have a passport and no desire to travel overseas or even interstate.

 

[Seat0B]

messaging hasn’t been great. They just have to say vaccines only work where there is herd immunity and we need everyone vaccinated and no one is going anywhere until we have say 75% vaccinated. Then they have to a real plan for when they will open up - this is the hard bit, as with low numbers vaccinated overseas who knows at what point it is safe. However if they say once you are vaccinated you can leave and come back at will, with home quarantine then that should be a good carrot.

In total agreement with you there @Flying mermaid.

 

[mviy]

Lots of complaining about the under 50s not getting the jab on this thread, but its not even an option unless you fall into 1a or 1b which is a small % of under 50s.

Well some are saying that there is AZ sitting there unused. I'm in 2B and would be happy to have the AZ vaccine if there's any chance not waiting for Pfizer may mean that I am able to travel sooner than I otherwise would. If I had the first dose of AZ now I'm sure I'd get the second dose well before the borders reopened. Whereas with the rush for Pfizer later in the year it's possible that I may not get the second dose of Pfizer till after the borders reopen. It would appear that I am far from alone in this thinking on AFF.

 

[Seat0B]

Essential poll: fewer than 50% of over-50s willing to get AstraZeneca vaccine

Rise in vaccine hesitancy threatening to derail government’s already troubled rollout

www.theguardian.com

This article in the Guardian quotes a recent Essential Poll that observed significant growth in vaccine hesitancy in the over 50 cohort.
There is also significant hesitancy in younger age groups too, and in both cases, the level of hesitancy is increasing.

In my opinion, this is what happens when there is little perceived benefit to taking the vaccine, which in turn makes the even tiny risks (of clots and of unknown long term effects) not worth taking. People are not stupid. They have by and large assessed that individual risk of getting COVID in Australia is tiny, so therefore the benefit of avoiding COVID is not very compelling. Further, the only/major source of COVID in the community now is escapes from HQ. The federal Government is reacting to that by stopping flights from high risk countries and banning most people from leaving the country. The state Governments are reacting by having very restrictive caps for HQ, and slamming the borders shut every time there is a single case. No politician (except St Gladys) is linking vaccination to even the possibility of being allowed to travel or being exempted from lockdowns and border closures. So as there is an all but zero likelihood of getting COVID in these circumstances, it's probably not unreasonable for people to feel that their personal risk equation does not warrant taking even the very tiny risks of vaccination.

It's a stalemate, and the governments collectively need to "go first" and give people a glimpse of what they will miss out on if they don't get vaccinated to get things moving again and overcome vaccine hesitancy. People just need some sort of sweetener (or even carrot and stick) to get them motivated again.

I am 100% not an anit-vaxxer, and I was very willing to get the shots, but now, not so much. However, my friend's son, who lives in the UK and will be fully immunised, looks like coming back in October for a family occasion, and she has asked me to get vaccinated so that I am not at risk from contact with them both. Also, my first interstate client has enquired for work from September, after cancelling last year's entire program. These two events make me lean more towards getting the shot when I am eligible (2A), because they change my personal risk assessment. However, if I am immunised but still get caught up in a lockdown on the interstate work travel, I will be furious, as the extra accommodation costs will consume my profit from the work and therefore the whole trip would be financially unviable. These are the sorts of things the government(s) could be doing a lot more to address.

 

[Flying mermaid]

Well some are saying that there is AZ sitting there unused. I'm in 2B and would be happy to have the AZ vaccine if there's any chance not waiting for Pfizer may mean that I am able to travel sooner than I otherwise would. If I had the first dose of AZ now I'm sure I'd get the second dose well before the borders reopened. Whereas with the rush for Pfizer later in the year it's possible that I may not get the second dose of Pfizer till after the borders reopen. It would appear that I am far from alone in this thinking on AFF.

There is only 3 weeks between doses of the Pfizer so once you have your first dose it doesn’t take long to be fully vaccinated. I think the secret will be to make your appointment as soon as 2B opens up - others will probably dither for awhile.

 

[mviy]

There is only 3 weeks between doses of the Pfizer so once you have your first dose it doesn’t take long to be fully vaccinated. I think the secret will be to make your appointment as soon as 2B opens up - others will probably dither for awhile.

Yes. I could have to try several different places to try and get a booking ASAP when that happens.

 

[jonboixxx]

I'm not going to argue about WW1/WW2

Except you do. You brought it up. I believe it feeds into the hyperbole that adds nothing to the facts of the predicament.

(noting that excepting Brazil none of South America participated in WW1, and most of it remained out of the frey in WW2 too,

Wrong.

 

[OATEK]

My point was not about number of deaths, it was about breadth of impact. There were some parts of the world which were largely untouched by WW1 and WW2, whereas Covid is impacting all countries directly.



If you are in an eligible category call up any respiratory clinic and you will see how easy it is to get a same day AZ appoitnment. You only have to wait if you insist on seeing a GP. Also many articles about lack of people taking up appointments.

If we were short of AZ they wouldnt be bringing forward 2A to next week, they are doing this because uptake of AZ is poor (number of vaccinations per week in NSW has fallen significantly since AZ advice changed for under 50s) whilst supply keeps coming from CSL

Not many countries not affected by WW1/WW2. When you get a free moment have a look on google for the north african campaigns, the battle of the River Plate and the Graf Spree, the Japanese in China and most of SE Asia, New Guinea etc etc.
Postscript: Also have a look at Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck and his victories against British troops in East Africa during WW1 - made famous in a somewhat satirical work The Ice Cream Wars.

 

[OZDUCK]

WA to open up 'mass vaccination clinics' for the over 50's from next Monday. Plus a new advertising campaign is to be launched to encourage vaccinations.

West Australians aged over 50 eligible to receive COVID jab from Monday

Mass coronavirus vaccination clinics at Perth Airport and the Claremont Showgrounds will be used to administer the AstraZeneca jab to West Australians aged over 50 from next Monday.

www.abc.net.au

 

[dajop]

Any discussion of cancellation of the Olympics in during WWI and WWII, also needs to consider where they were intended to be held and athlete safety as well.
Let's see:
1916 .... Berlin
1940 .... Tokyo (then Helsinki)
1940W ... Sapporo(then Germany)
1944 .... London.
1944W ... Italy

 

[Lynda2475]

Date set for opening of NSW mass vaccination hub — but long waits expected

The state's vaccination centre will open at Sydney Olympic Park next month and be equipped to administer 60,000 jabs a week but the Premier says the system will collapse if everyone tries to book in immediately.

www.abc.net.au

The NSW mass vaccination hub will open on May 10 as the government escalates efforts to distribute COVID-19 vaccines to six million people.

Doors will open to vaccinate people who are eligible under Phase 1 of the rollout — frontline healthcare and quarantine workers and their families.

People over the age of 50 will have to wait until May 24, three weeks behind the May 3 target set by Prime Minister Scott Morrison.

People over 50 can get heir jab at GP clinics from May 17

The Olympic Park vaccination hub is expected to administer 60,000 doses each week and it will be the only site in the state offering both Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines.

 

[sjk]

Any discussion of cancellation of the Olympics in during WWI and WWII

is mindbogglingly pointless.

 

[mviy]

The key points about the Olympics and Paralympics are:

• The number of vaccines needed for the approx 2050 people to go to the Olympics and Paralympics is immaterial in the scheme of things. It won't have a material impact on the rollout. About 2% of one week's supply is not material.
• The Olympics and Paralympics may/may not go ahead.

 

[dajop]

The key points about the Olympics and Paralympics are:

• The number of vaccines needed for the approx 2050 people to go to the Olympics and Paralympics is immaterial in the scheme of things. It won't have a material impact on the rollout. About 2% of one week's supply is not material.
• The Olympics and Paralympics may/may not go ahead.

The impact is more taking up quarantine places on return, 2050 is a big number. Or will our Olympians occupy a luxury resort when they return and be excluded from pleb quarantine quotas and locations?

 

[roogirl]

The impact is more taking up quarantine places on return, 2050 is a big number. Or will our Olympians occupy a luxury resort when they return and be excluded from pleb quarantine quotas and locations?

Of course they will. Zero chance Our HeroesTM will be locked up in a plague hotel like the rest of us. Bit like how if you know how to act you are more trustworthy and can quarantine at home.

 

[HappyFlyerFamily]

The impact is more taking up quarantine places on return, 2050 is a big number. Or will our Olympians occupy a luxury resort when they return and be excluded from pleb quarantine quotas and locations?

Maybe they are going to the ‘celebrity’ quarantine stream being touted by Vic, paid by AOC?!?!