Australia’s COVID-19 vaccination strategy must change
10 May 2021
Australia can only achieve herd immunity from COVID-19 if it changes its vaccine strategy, Quentin Grafton, Zoë Hyde, Tom Kompas, and John Parslow write.
The world has now reached the grim milestone of about 160 million total confirmed cases of COVID-19. More than 20 million cases have been reported by India, which has been devastated by a second wave driven by the premature relaxation of public health measures and more transmissible variants of the virus.
Even some countries with high vaccination rates haven’t been spared. Chile is battling a new wave of infections despite more than one third of its population being fully vaccinated, mostly with CoronaVac.
The United Kingdom will offer adults under the age of 40 an alternative to AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 shot following a recommendation on Friday from its panel of vaccine advisors.
The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) said on Friday its new advice, which was issued amid persistent fears the vaccine may cause rare blood clots in a small minority of recipients, reflected low levels of COVID-19 infection in the UK and the availability of other jabs made by Pfizer and Moderna.
Previously, JCVI’s advice was only for people under 30 to be offered an alternative vaccine.
“As COVID-19 rates continue to come under control, we are advising that adults aged 18–39 years with no underlying health conditions are offered an alternative to the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine, if available and if it does not cause delays in having the vaccine,” said Wei Shen Lim, COVID-19 Chair for JCVI.
6 hours ago
A ‘RESPONSE plan’ to support people suffering from long-term Covid symptoms is being developed, the Health Minister has said, with estimates that hundreds of Islanders could be affected by the condition.
Government of Jersey offices in The Parade. Coronavirus Covid-19 press conference address to the island. Deputy Richard Renouf Picture: ROB CURRIE. (30785138)
Government of Jersey offices in The Parade. Coronavirus Covid-19 press conference address to the island. Deputy Richard Renouf Picture: ROB CURRIE. (30785144)
Deputy Richard Renouf said that long-Covid was a ‘new and emerging condition’ which had been a ‘largely unforeseen consequence’ of the pandemic.
Under National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines, long-Covid is defined as having symptoms associated with the virus that last for more than 12 weeks.
The level of subvention Northern Ireland receives from the UK exchequer has become, like so many things in the North, politicised. Itâs regularly â and spuriously â conflated with the economic cost of a united Ireland, which is an entirely different concept.
In reality, the transfers that go from London to Belfast each year â they amounted to £9.4 billion (â¬10.8 billion) in 2019 â merely reflect the Northâs annual budget deficit, the difference between what it raises in taxes and what it spends.
According to the UKâs Office for National Statistics (ONS), Northern Ireland was one of nine UK regions to have a fiscal deficit in 2019.