FRAN KELLY
Well, the Prime Minister has declared the country is beating COVID and Australians are, quote, taking their lives back. Strong vaccination rates have allowed New South Wales to reopen after more than 100 days of lockdown, while in Victoria, which has endured the longest stay-at-home orders in the world, they’re due to follow in a few weeks’ time.
The Prime Minister has revealed that talks are underway to bring forward the resumption of international travel possibly by the end of this month.
Federal Health Minister, Greg Hunt, joins us now. Minister, welcome back to Breakfast.
GREG HUNT
And good morning Fran.
FRAN KELLY
New South Wales has now reopened with some restrictions still in place. Parts of regional Victoria have started a vaccinated economy trial from today. Is this the end of lockdown? Should this be the end of lockdowns, Minister?
GREG HUNT
Look, that's my hope. Our goal here is to continue to achieve some of the highest vaccination rates in the world. That protects people, but it also allows us to reclaim our lives and our lifestyles and our livelihood so it is an incredibly important step today in New South Wales.
They've faced at a major outbreak, and overwhelmingly, they've seen those numbers plummet from 1500 to below 500. And that shows that vaccination works. The targeted lockdowns over Christmas in the northern Beach, and now, in particular, in the southwest and western Sydney, but across Sydney morning generally.
And then world leading contact tracing. All of these things have contributed. But above all else, it shows that vaccination works and that's real hope for people right around Australia, and especially in Victoria as well.
FRAN KELLY
Well, that's it. I'll come to Victoria but the targeted lockdowns didn't really work so well. It was the vaccinations that were the game changer.
But does this mean, though, then that stay-at-home orders, curfews, 5k travel limits, should now be consigned to history?
GREG HUNT
Well, all of these will be decreasingly relevant. And, you know, our goal in all of these things is to regain the natural freedoms, the ordinary day-to-day things where people can visit, you know, their mum or their dad, or catch up with friends and family, to be able to catch up in a restaurant.
Friends said to me from Sydney yesterday, he said, what am I looking forward to this week? Being able to go and see my mum, take her to a cafe, and later on in the week, go bowling. That's his thing, you know, it's people being able to live their lives.
And so we know that this disease is moving from a pandemic to being what's called endemic, meaning part of the global environment, but with high vaccination rates- and we've now passed the US, we've passed Israel, we've passed the EU over the weekend, Germany, and the OECD.
And so, you know, Australians are really stepping forward. More work to be done so please keep coming forward, especially in Queensland and WA, but there are large volumes of vaccines. In WA this week there’s over 179,000 just in state clinics.
FRAN KELLY
Right.
GREG HUNT
In Queensland, 530,000 vaccines just in state clinics plus GPs.
FRAN KELLY
Okay, so plenty of doses to go around.
GREG HUNT
Correct.
FRAN KELLY
Can I ask you about your home state of Victoria, recorded almost 4000 new cases on the weekend. It locked down quickly. It’s vaccination rate is still lagging behind New South Wales; Victoria’s at 58 per cent double dose compared to 73 per cent.
Would it have been so far behind if vaccines hadn’t been diverted to Sydney? Is that why so many Victorians have a few more weeks of lockdown while people over the border are, sort of, starting to head out to a cafe or visit their mum, as you say?
GREG HUNT
Well, the first vaccination in Victoria is at 85.5 per cent and New South Wales is at 90.3 per cent, so they’re very close. The second vaccination rate is increasing.
What we saw in fact that really drove New South Wales was a massive uptake of AstraZeneca through the general practices and a huge difference in the two states. That’s uncapped supply available to both states and, in fact, available to all states.
FRAN KELLY
But Victoria moved heavily on AstraZeneca too. In fact, that’s one of the reasons they’re suggesting that there’s a lag because of the longer take-up time didn’t they?
GREG HUNT
Well, I think you find that there is a very large volume of AstraZeneca which was taken up through general practices. The population embraced it through Western Sydney, South Western Sydney, and so there was an extremely high take-up.
But, all up, what we’re seeing is rapid vaccination across those states, so Victoria over the course of the weekend had the highest second-dose uptake. So, for example, on Saturday, New South Wales had a 0.7 per cent second dose rate. Victoria had a 0.9 per cent second dose rate.
So, you know, different states at different times with, above all else, outbreaks driving demand have had different rates of uptake. But what we’re seeing, vaccination works, the targeted approach has been very effective.
World-leading contact tracing has also helped, and there is real light and real hope for people in Victoria. Despite the numbers, what we’ll see is, it is challenging. I know there’s fatigue, you know, we know it just as a state from the data of our movement, but also the reality of people’s lives.
But keeping going, we’ll get through it, we’ve got through it. We’ve had one of the lowest rates of loss of life in the OECD. One of the three lowest rates out of 30 countries, both across the pandemic and this year- 38 countries. And so- and now we have one of the highest vaccination rates.
FRAN KELLY
Okay. There's a compelling economic case to reopen as soon as possible, and that is clear. You're the Health Minister. Case numbers and hospitalisations will rise. We know that. Are you concerned that the opening up of New South Wales is too soon?
I mean, we've seen health officers and epidemiologists warning it should be postponed, some say, at least until people under the age of 40 reach 80 per cent vax rate.
GREG HUNT
Well, it's following the national plan and the national plan is following the health and medical advice.
FRAN KELLY
Yeah, but that doesn’t mean that the national plan is correct and safe. I mean, are you concerned that the case numbers and hospitalisation will rise and we are opening up, we're only 70 per cent, we're not 80 per cent yet.
GREG HUNT
I am confident that New South Wales has made the right decisions. They made the right decisions on their vaccinations, on their lockdowns, on their contact tracing.
Many people would say that 100-day lockdown was too long. I think that what they have done is strike the right balance.
It has been incredibly difficult. It's been hellishly difficult for so many people. You could be a single parent in a flat with two schoolkids.
FRAN KELLY
Oh it's tough. But people are still nervous, Minister, that's the point I'm making, I suppose. And particularly perhaps in the regions. Regional hospitals could be, as we know, so easily overwhelmed.
Regional vaccination rates in some parts of Australia are lower. One listener’s written in, saying my post code of 2623 in regional New South Wales is under 40 per cent fully vaccinated. They're worried about the opening and people coming and spreading it, and their capacity to cope.
GREG HUNT
I would put it this way, New South Wales has been tested. Their hospital system has been tested with 1500 cases a day.
FRAN KELLY
Yeah, that's in cities.
GREG HUNT
They’re now down well below that. And what we see is that they've been tested and they've passed.
Now it's not over for anybody, anywhere, that this disease is right around the world. We still seeing, on average, over 400,000 cases a day worldwide. We’re seeing, and those are the official figures, the diagnosed figures, we're seeing over 6000 lives lost around the world a day, again officially.
But what we're doing in Australia is giving ourselves the best chance to get on with our lives. Our hospital systems are well prepared. New South Wales has shown it, Victoria is showing it. And around the country, those systems have been prepared.
And the vaccination uptake, I think, is a very important part of that. So I think New South Wales is following the national plan and they’re well prepared.
FRAN KELLY
There's a lot of concern about the most vulnerable amongst us, people living with disability. Just over one-third of NDIS participants are fully vaccinated. First Australians is coronavirus outbreak-
GREG HUNT
That’s not correct.
FRAN KELLY
I beg your pardon, Minister?
GREG HUNT
That's not correct.
FRAN KELLY
What's the figure?
GREG HUNT
The NDIS rate is 74.1 per cent for first doses and 55.7 per cent for second doses. For the most people, the disability residents, it's 81 per cent first dose and 73 per cent second dose, which is 11 per cent higher than the national average.
FRAN KELLY
What about it- I've- statistics I've seen is that, for instance, 59 per cent of NDIS screened workers are fully vaccinated. I mean, we're still a long way.
GREG HUNT
78.1 per cent is the correct figure for that, and 65.3 per cent is the second dose figure. What that means is.
FRAN KELLY
So yeah, fully vaccinated. I said 59 per cent are fully vaccinated. So we still got a way to go.
GREG HUNT
65.3 per cent is the disability worker figure for the second doses. That's three percent higher than the national average. So what you're seeing is disability workers, disability residents, significantly higher fully vaccinated rates than the national population.
FRAN KELLY
So people with disabilities, your message to them, you don't need to feel worried? You don't need to feel vulnerable?
GREG HUNT
No, of course everybody needs to be on alert.
FRAN KELLY
I mean, Victoria, for instance, sped up, has a targeted rollout for people with disability. Would you urge every state to be doing that?
GREG HUNT
Look, I think that's a very valuable thing to do. We've been focusing on disability right since the outset.
There has been hesitancy, but one of the things that we've achieved as a nation is a lower case load and a lower loss of life than the national average. The national average itself is one of the three lowest in the OECD. But we fight for every life.
And so they have those rates, which are higher than the national average for fully vaccinated for both workers, and significantly higher, 11 per cent higher for disability residents, that is a huge success and achievement.
But we're just going to keep working to encourage every single person who's caring for somebody with a severe disability, or whether they’re in a position to be making their own decisions, all of those people to have the confidence to do that, and all of the different channels and mechanisms, these help.
So we're doing against extraordinary things as a country, but today is a signature day. And over the weekend, New South Wales, 90 per cent first doses. Tassie, 80 per cent, Queensland and WA have now hit the 70 per cent marks. So progress across the board.
FRAN KELLY
We're almost out of time, but I want to ask you about the prime minister backing the plans of New South Wales to fast-track the resumption of international travel for people who are double vaccinated.
It could start as soon as the state’s home quarantine program is up and running. That could be as early as the end of this month or early next month.
If that's the case, will that mean the end of the tight caps on the number of Australians who are desperate to get home? Could they start coming back in large numbers within a matter of weeks? Is that what you're foreseeing?
GREG HUNT
Yes. And the reason why is if you are able to home quarantine, then we're very used to that in terms of, of course, people crossing state borders.
People who are home quarantining because they've been a close contact or otherwise. So that's a system that's well established and well tried in Australia. And it's been a very important protection.
And the reason we are so keen on home quarantine as a mechanism is not just to ensure that people can travel overseas, to reunite with families or friends or loved ones, but also for people to be able to come back, those that have been out of the country.
They have carried part of the burden for the nation and I acknowledge that, but that has kept us safe, but it means we can bring them home. We can remove those caps for returning Australians if they can get home quarantine. And that's really important.
FRAN KELLY
So home by Christmas for everyone has been trying to get home for 18 months.
GREG HUNT
I want to see everybody home as quickly as possible. And if New South Wales is able to bring forward those dates, and we are working with them, that would be a deeply important human thing.
FRAN KELLY
What about booster shots? Half a million severely immunocompromised people are eligible for booster shots from today.
But Norman Swan told us earlier that after six months, for instance, from your second Pfizer dose, your protection against COVID is only- drops to around 30 per cent.
Will third doses be necessary for everyone else? And is that the plan? When will we start those?
GREG HUNT
So we're planning on booster shots being available for everybody. There are probably three parts to the equation.
One is the supply. We have over 150 million doses available for the next year and beyond.
Two is the logistics, we have a system which is doing that.
Three is the medical science, that's been approved by the Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation for the 500,000 you mentioned; 500,000 immunocompromised people start from today to have access to a booster shot. And ATAGI or the Technical Advisory Group will provide advice by the end of October on the national program.
Paul Kelly drew a very, the Chief Medical Officer, drew a very clear distinction, however, compared with what Norman said today, the capacity to resist infection. And again, there's a lot of international evidence which is being weighed up versus the ongoing protection, which Paul Kelly, the Chief Medical Officer said, Professor Kelly, on Friday was very strong still after that period against hospitalisation, serious illness and loss of life.
So it’s important to have that confidence.
FRAN KELLY
Minister, we must leave it there. Thank you very much for joining us.
GREG HUNT
Thanks, Fran. And we're getting through it. And Australians have done an amazing job. But if you haven't been vaccinated, please come forward. And if your second dose is due, please come forward.
FRAN KELLY
Greg Hunt, thank you. Health Minister Greg Hunt.