Legislative Council - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2021-03-31 Daily Xml

Contents

COVID-19 Vaccination Rollout

The Hon. E.S. BOURKE (14:45): My question is to the Minister for Health and Wellbeing regarding COVID-19. Five and a half weeks after the start of the rollout, have all South Australian frontline healthcare workers classified as 1a even received a first dose of COVID-19 vaccine; when was the last time the minister received a briefing on these figures; and when exactly will all South Australian frontline healthcare and medi-hotel workers be fully vaccinated against COVID-19?

The Hon. S.G. WADE (Minister for Health and Wellbeing) (14:45): In terms of the frontline healthcare workers, I think it is important to distinguish between phase 1a and phase 1b. Phase 1b is frontline healthcare workers, quarantine and airport workers, which includes nurses from our health networks, residential aged care and disability care staff of state government run facilities and also the residents of residential aged care and disability facilities. It was never the intention that phase 1a would be the end of vaccinating healthcare workers. It's quite clear in the national program that phase 1b will involve other healthcare workers and they will be workers right across the state.

I am pleased to be able to say, and I know the Minister for Human Services has been acutely interested in the vaccination program for disability facilities, I am advised that we expect that the state-run facilities, both disability and aged care, will be completed in the next week or so. We are looking forward to that milestone. The commonwealth, of course, is taking responsibility for both the staff and the residents of commonwealth aged-care facilities.

I am not briefed on the commonwealth program, but the honourable member asked me when I was last briefed on the vaccination program. I can assure you that every work day I am getting briefings on different aspects of the vaccination program. I had a detailed discussion with the leadership of the vaccine program this morning.