Michaela Meade and Jessica Micallef
Aged care residents in Whittlesea and Hume will need to wait at least one more week before receiving the COVID-19 vaccination, with all aged care homes in both municipalities left off the week one vaccination schedule.
The federal government last week announced the location of the aged care centres that would receive the vaccine first. The national roll-out of the Pfizer vaccine began yesterday.
Epping Gardens Aged Care, which recorded the third highest number of cases among aged care centres during Victoria’s second wave, has not been scheduled to receive the vaccine this week.
By Alesha Capone
Residents at aged care homes in three Wyndham suburbs will be among the first in the country to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
According to the federal health department, phase 1a of the roll-out, which began this week, will start with aged care centres in 44 suburbs and towns in Victoria including Werribee, Hoppers Crossing and Point Cook.
Aged care homes in Altona Meadows, Ballarat, Cowes, Drouin, Lara and Delacombe have also been included in the first week of the roll out.
Hundreds of aged care residents, staff and people connected to Wyndham aged care home were diagnosed with the COVID-19 last year.
Senior cabinet ministers have hinted Australians will be banned from travelling overseas for a holiday, even as the rollout of the Covid vaccine reduced case numbers and health risks.
Australian frontline workers get vaccinated against coronavirus dailymail.co.uk - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from dailymail.co.uk Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
A global shortage of syringes could hamper Australia s coronavirus vaccine rollout by causing thousands of doses to be wasted.
The Pfizer vaccine, which started its rollout on Sunday morning, uses a custom-made low dead-space syringe, which Australia has ordered.
These syringes can extract an extra sixth dose from a vial of the vaccine, whereas standard syringes can only get five.
Pictured: Medical staff work at a pop-up Covid-19 testing site in Brighton, Melbourne on Saturday, February 6
The Pfizer vaccine, which started its rollout on Sunday morning, uses a custom-made low dead-space syringe, which Australia has ordered Even with a steady hand and a sharp eye, often you can t get out that last drop, Mike Toole from the Burnet Institute in Melbourne told the Herald Sun.