Australia COVID LIVE updates NSW could lead nation on vaccine charge Greg Hunt says dont wait for Pfizer Queensland in snap lockdown

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Frustrated regional and rural leaders in NSW have said they “haven’t got a hope in hell” if Sydney’s COVID-19 outbreak leaks into their communities and are seeking clarity from the NSW government after it diverted up to 40,000 of their Pfizer doses to Year 12 students in the city’s most affected suburbs.

People outside Greater Sydney began receiving text messages on Friday and Saturday from NSW Health advising their Pfizer vaccination appointment will need to be rescheduled to assist in vaccinating Year 12 students in south-west and western Sydney to help them return to face-to-face teaching.

The text message from NSW Health.

One man, David Smith, took to social media to say his booking over a month away was cancelled. He said he was a teacher living next to a hot zone and with a family member in the highest-risk category, and all of his teacher colleagues were receiving the same message.

Murrumbidgee Mayor Ruth McRae said her community in southern NSW want to know where the doses will be taken from exactly, whether they are guaranteed a replenished supply and how it will push out the timeline.

In a statement sent to the Herald last night, NSW Health apologised for the inconvenience and thanked people for their patience.

“As part of its pandemic response, NSW Health is taking this important temporary measure to also give us the best chance of containing the current outbreak in Greater Sydney as quickly as possible,” it said.

“As a result, people in other regions could receive a notice advising their first dose of Pfizer will be rescheduled. Anyone who has had their first dose already or those in priority groups 1a or 1b will not have their bookings rescheduled.”

First up, Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt has warned Australians should not wait to be vaccinated with the Pfizer jab, as new data from the federal Health Department reveals just 1 per cent of the 2702 people who have caught COVID-19 in Sydney’s Delta outbreak were fully vaccinated.

Cabramatta pharmacist Quin On runs two pharmacies both offering walk in off the street for COVID AstraZeneca vaccine.Credit:Dean Sewell

Of the 15 people who were fully vaccinated but still caught COVID, none needed hospitalisation and none died.

Just 5 per cent of cases, or 141 people, caught COVID after having one jab, with the partially vaccinated accounting for 6 per cent of hospital cases, 4 per cent of ICU cases and 8 per cent of deaths.

A total of 2164 people, or 80 per cent of cases, were among the unvaccinated who also made up 87 per cent of hospital admissions, 91 per cent of ICU patients and 85 per cent of deaths.

Mr Hunt said that the data showed that the AstraZeneca vaccine - which is widely available but which some Australians have resisted taking because of changing health advice about the risk of blood clots that can lead to death - is equally effective as Pfizer against the virus.

“Either vaccine can protect your life or protect the life of your loved ones,” he said.

Read the full report here.

Good morning, and welcome to today’s live coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic. I’m Natassia Chrysanthos and I’ll be with you until the early afternoon.

Sydney recorded 201 new cases yesterday, including 138 people under the age of 40 who were only recently approved to receive the AstraZeneca vaccine and who cannot get Pfizer yet. Greater Sydney is entering its sixth week of lockdown today.

Eleven local government areas in south-east Queensland also entered a snap three-day lockdown yesterday after six new community cases were recorded, throwing the NRL and AFL weekend games into disarray.

Victoria declared those parts of south-east Queensland a ‘red-zone’ from 8pm yesterday, as it recorded two new cases yesterday. Anyone in NSW who has been to the affected Queensland LGAs since July 21 must now follow stay-at-home orders.

Stay tuned for today’s updates.

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