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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2020-04-07 Daily Xml
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Viral respiratory Disease Pandemic Response Plan

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Leader of the Opposition) (14:34): Supplementary in relation to the answer about the Viral Respiratory Disease Pandemic Response Plan: is part of that plan for earlier-than-planned flu vaccination programs, and is this part of the plan being implemented?

The Hon. S.G. WADE (Minister for Health and Wellbeing) (14:34): I should stress that the plan the honourable member is referring to is version 6. It is not new. Version 1 was released in 2017. There have been a number of iterations since then. This latest plan is a refreshing of the framework that already underpins the work of SA Health. It would be fair to say that every major public health event throws up its own unexpected challenges, and I think it would be fair to say that already coronavirus has done exactly that.

We have had to be nimble. Obviously, the timing of the coronavirus pandemic in the Southern Hemisphere is fundamentally different from that in the Northern Hemisphere, and that will raise particular challenges for us. The potential coincidence of the influenza season and the coronavirus peak is a significant concern. That is why the government has been very keen to roll out the influenza program. We have substantial stocks of influenza vaccines in place. We were very proud, the Hon. Michelle Lensink (the Minister for Human Services) and myself, I think it was only two or three weeks ago—I must admit weeks do blur at the current time—to introduce free flu vaccines for homeless people.

This government has shown its commitment to supporting the most vulnerable members of our community. We have not only provided free flu vaccines for vulnerable people but in another part of the Marshall government's strong plan to respond to the pandemic the Hon. Michelle Lensink has established a program for hotel accommodation of homeless people to deal with that vulnerable group. My understanding is that the most recent number who had taken up that opportunity was around 250, which is great. I appreciate that it's a challenge for many of those people. It is disruptive for them, just as it is disruptive for any of us, but I am grateful that they have taken that opportunity. These are unusual times; we need to do unusual things.

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