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Parliamentary Questions


Question Without Notice No. 215 asked in the Legislative Assembly on 15 June 2021 by Mr M.J. Folkard

Parliament: 41 Session: 1

CORONAVIRUS — VACCINATIONS

215. Mr M.J. FOLKARD to the Minister for Health:

I refer to the state government's commitment to getting as many Western Australians as possible vaccinated against COVID-19.

(1) Can the minister update the house on Western Australia's COVID-19 vaccination program, including the fast-tracking of the vaccination rollout for those between 30 and 49 years of age?

(2) Can the minister outline to the house why eligible Western Australians should get vaccinated as soon as possible?

Mr R.H. COOK replied:

(1)–(2) I would like to thank the member for Burns Beach for the question. It is a very important one. Once we are safe, we can all be safe. I was very proud to stand up with the Premier last Tuesday to announce that Western Australians aged between 30 and 49 are now also eligible for the COVID-19 vaccination in Western Australia. Western Australia has fast-tracked the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccination program, offering the vaccine to all eligible Western Australians aged 30 years and over. Those aged between 30 and 49 will receive the Pfizer vaccine, consistent with national health advice, at our state-run clinics. People aged 50 and over will continue to receive the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine. In line with the decision made by national cabinet, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people over the age of 16 will also be eligible to be vaccinated.

Since making that announcement, over 100 000 appointments have been made in the past week to ensure that people can get the vaccine that they are now eligible for. We have been overwhelmed by the demand. The community vaccination clinic at Claremont Showground, which operates seven days a week, has scaled up from 10 June to cope with this increase in demand, with a new capacity of 2 000 appointments each day. From next week, the Joondalup and Kwinana community vaccination clinics will also start to provide both types of vaccines on different days, with the capacity to administer between 1 500 and 2 000 vaccines each day. By the end of the month, more than 30 000 vaccination appointments will be available each week at the state-run clinics in the metropolitan area, with additional clinics to come online to take up the increases.

Vaccination clinics in regional areas will also be offering both types of vaccine, with the first regional state-run Bunbury COVID-19 community vaccination clinic opening last week. This clinic has the capacity to offer more than 600 appointments. We also have 75 health service clinics, operated by the WA Country Health Service, in addition to our GP network, our respiratory clinics and the Aboriginal medical services that are currently administering the COVID-19 vaccine right across our regions. Of course, appointments are still available for people in the 1a and 1b cohorts, including people who work in disability and aged care, and younger adults with a specific medical condition.

Now is the time to get vaccinated. People keep asking me, ''When do we get away from lockdowns? When can we travel again?'' The only time that we will be able to do that is when we get vaccinated. A message to all those people who think they should hold off and wait for a different vaccine: I just remind you how unpredictable and nasty this beast is. Particularly given the new variants of this disease, any hesitation in getting the vaccine is the day that people keep our community more at risk. Do the right thing. If you are eligible for any vaccine, you should get yourself vaccinated because once you are safe, we are all safe. Now is the time to roll up for WA. Go to rollup.wa.gov.au or ring the 13 COVID helpline to get yourself vaccinated. Everyone, do the right thing. It is not just for you; it is for your community, it is for your vulnerable family members, it is for everyone, and it is about keeping Western Australians safe.