CORONAVIRUS —
VACCINATION PLAN — REGIONS
817. Hon COLIN de GRUSSA to the minister representing the
Minister for Health:
I ask this
question on behalf of Hon Martin Aldridge, who is away on urgent parliamentary
business.
I refer to Local government area
(LGA) COVID-19 vaccine rates and the SA4–Geographic vaccination
rates, both published by the commonwealth on 11 October 2021, that identify
that parts of regional Western Australia have the lowest vaccination uptake in
Australia, and to question without notice 616 that Hon Martin Aldridge asked in
this place on 2 September.
(1) Can the
minister please outline the state government's strategy to address the
critically low rates of vaccination uptake in regional WA, particularly in the
state's north?
(2) Is the
minister considering any incentives to ensure communities in WA's north
have access to the vaccination in a timely manner; and, if so, please provide
detail?
(3) Has the
minister written to the commonwealth to request local government area vaccine
rates for remote communities classified as outback north and outback south so
we can have a more transparent overview of the gaps in the vaccine rollout?
(4) Please table
any correspondence in relation to (3).
Hon SUE
ELLERY replied:
I thank the honourable member for
some notice of the question, which I provide on behalf of the minister
representing the Minister for Health.
(1) The WA
Country Health Service is rolling out mass vaccination clinics in priority
areas across regional Western Australia. The
mass vaccination clinics are delivered in partnership with other health service
providers, including Aboriginal medical services, general practitioners, Aspen
Medical and pharmacies and supported by local organisations and industry. Mass
vaccination clinics have been held in towns in the Kimberley, Pilbara and
southern regions, with further towns being planned across the midwest,
goldfields, south west and wheatbelt. The pop-up mass clinics are in addition
to the WACHS-run vaccination clinics available at regional hospitals, small
hospitals and nursing posts across country Western Australia.
(2) No.
(3) WA Health has requested that the commonwealth
provide increased access to information about vaccinations in remote
communities—in particular, vaccination rates.
(4) Not
applicable.