Covid-19: Australia to begin mass vaccinations in February

 Vaccine experts have warned the Australian population that life will not return to "normal" in 2021 despite the accelerated rollout of the COVID-19 jab, with the effectiveness of any vaccine only measured once "60 to 70 per cent" of the population is immunised.


Key points:

The Federal Government announced on Wednesday it was moving its vaccine rollout to "early March" but yesterday brought that forward to "mid-February"

Vaccine experts say the Australian population needs to remain patient with the rollout, with vaccines not a 'magic bullet'

They say travel to specific countries will be off the cards this year and the COVID-19 environment will remain a part of life for 2021


Prime Minister Scott Morrison yesterday announced frontline workers fighting COVID-19 will get the first jabs of the Pfizer vaccine as early as the middle of next month after the Government moved forward the rollout from "early March".


In its five-phase plan, next in line will be the elderly, Indigenous people, younger people with health problems and other healthcare workers. 


https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-55579770



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Kangaroo Bay waterfront land for hotel to be bought back by Clarence Council from developer Chambroad

Image
 After six years of design revisions, community campaigns and false starts, the Clarence City Council is back to square one at Kangaroo Bay after voting to buy back the land from developers Chambroad.  Chambroad planned to build a 150-room hotel at the site, with four levels, each styled according to a different theme.  But at a council meeting on Monday, the council ruled Chambroad had been given "ample time and a number of extensions to proceed with the development and … time was up". Mayor Brendan Blomeley told ABC Radio Hobart that the sale and development agreement with Chambroad meant the council could legally buy the land back for the sale price of $2.44 million plus GST and stamp duty. Read More: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-03-21/tas-council-to-start-kangaroo-bay-buy-back/102122610
Read more

Hobart City Council to vote on expanded conflict of interest registry

Image
 A new policy to proactively declare councillors' potential conflicts of interests before they arise is set to be voted on at a Hobart City Council meeting this evening. If passed, it will bring the council in line with other capital city councils around Australia.  Under the new policy, how many properties councillors own, which companies they hold shares in, and major income sources could all become publicly available from April. Read More: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-03-20/hobart-city-council-votes-on-conflict-of-interest-registry/102118128
Read more

Fears drought could follow floods as BOM forecasts chance of El Niño arriving off back of La Niña

Image
 Farmers across Australia are anxiously watching long-term climate forecasts, with fears a hot and dry El Niño system could back up the current flood-inducing La Niña.     The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) has advised that 40 per cent of past La Niña events have switched to El Niño events in the same year that a La Niña has ended. This year's La Niña is expected to recede by autumn. The last El Niño resulted in a record-breaking drought from 2017 to 2020, and that has farmers worried. "I don't want to think about El Niño or another drought," Moree grain and beef producer Oscar Pearce said. Read More: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-01-04/bom-forecasts-40-per-cent-chance-el-nino-august-drought-fears/101826780
Read more