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As Australia waits for the green light to roll out the coronavirus vaccine, new figures suggest people are more than happy to receive their vaccine.
Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said immunization rates for five-year-olds now exceeded the ambitious target of 95% coverage.
“Reaching our target of 95% supports herd immunity to stop the spread of vaccine-preventable diseases,” Hunt said in a Jan. 24 statement.
“These numbers show that Australians have both the ability and the will to lead the world in adopting COVID-19 vaccines, as they recognize the importance of vaccination and how it protects and saves lives.”
In the December 2020 quarter, Australia’s immunization coverage rate for five-year-olds rose to 95.09%, exceeding the World Health Organization’s estimated international average of 86%.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children at the age of five have the highest vaccination rates in the country at 97.25 percent.
At the same time, Australia’s seasonal influenza vaccination program continues to provide an increasing number of vaccines to Australians of all ages.
In 2020, the independent medical regulator, the Therapeutic Goods Administration, released more than 17.6 million doses of seasonal influenza vaccines for the Australian market.
Hunt believes this shows the confidence Australians have in the TGA to provide expert advice and ensure the safety and efficacy of all vaccines provided to the community.
The TGA is expected to approve a COVID-19 vaccine soon for deployment starting next month.
Meanwhile, no new locally acquired cases were reported in Australia on Saturday.
Victorian authorities on Saturday reported a new Australian Open tennis case involving a man in his 20s who is not a player.
Three other non-players – two men in their thirties and one in their fifties – have meanwhile been confirmed to be carriers of the highly contagious British strain of the virus.
There are 10 active cases related to the Open and 970 people associated with the tournament in quarantine.
Residents of dozens of suburbs in New South Wales are urged to watch for any possible symptoms of coronavirus after virus fragments are detected at two wastewater treatment plants.
NSW Health said its wastewater monitoring program recently detected fragments of the virus responsible for COVID-19 at factories in Liverpool and Glenfield in southwest Sydney.
Seven cases have been recorded in hotel quarantine – three in Victoria, two in Western Australia and one each in New South Wales and the Northern Territory.
WA will reopen its borders to New South Wales and Queensland from Monday, although travelers will still need to self-isolate for 14 days.
Colin Brinsden in Canberra
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