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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2020-11-10 Daily Xml
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COVID-19 Vaccine

The Hon. F. PANGALLO (15:07): Does the minister have an idea of how many of these vials would be distributed to South Australia? Has that been discovered? Also, can he update us, if he has any updates, on the other vaccines being trialled?

The Hon. S.G. WADE (Minister for Health and Wellbeing) (15:07): If I could address the second question first, I don't have details in terms of the range. My understanding is that the commonwealth has engaged a number of potential vaccine providers. I will also seek advice from my officers on whether we have been given even indicative figures as to our share. Again, I am a politician not a clinician, but my assumption would be that our share fundamentally depends on the prioritisation criteria.

For example, I have heard one public health clinician suggest that young people might actually be a priority for vaccination, not because they are particularly vulnerable—they are certainly not as vulnerable as older South Australians—but because they are particularly mobile. If you want to, you may well have particular cohorts. I suppose another example might be public transport workers, or whatever it might be—people who are experiencing significant movement within the society. It may be that prioritisation criteria address issues in terms of both the vulnerability to the disease and also the potential to contribute towards transmission.

Therefore, I believe it is only then, once the prioritisation criteria are settled, that we can know with clarity what our share will be, because it will depend on how many South Australians fit into the particular cohorts that are trying to be targeted. I assure the honourable member that there is work already underway in terms of talking to the commonwealth about rolling out a national vaccination program for COVID-19, and of course it will involve significant effort by SA Health and other health providers in South Australia to get the vaccine out.

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