LAURA JAYES:
So at the meantime, Australians are being encouraged to come forward for their third jab, and they're responding, with over 80 per cent of eligible people having their booster shot as of Sunday. Joining me live now is the COVID-19 Taskforce Commander, Lieutenant General John Frewen. You've had quite a job over the last couple of months. It is not over, General. You know that. The booster shots are rolling out. So, can you talk to us about the uptake and if there's any supply issues?
JOHN FREWEN:
Yeah. Hi, Laura. Great to be with you. Now look, the, the uptake on boosters has been fantastic. We've now delivered over a million booster shots over the last week or so. Of course, you'd know that last Sunday ATAGI shifted the advice to change the duration from six months to five months from people's second dose to their booster shot. That's brought in many more million people who are avail- eligible immediately. Supply isn't the issue. We've got, you know, many thousands of distribution points across the country, and we're working really hard with particularly those GPs and pharmacists who are carrying the load on this, to, to get the, the supply to them as they need it.
LAURA JAYES:
Okay. Well, the reality isn't quite matching what you're saying there in terms of supply, because there have been some isolated incidents but significant ones where people have lined up; they haven't been able to get their booster shot; pharmacies have run out. So what's going on there?
JOHN FREWEN:
Yeah. So look, the, the change was made on Sunday, so we've been working really hard this week to get additional orders in place. We're also working to move vaccines between various clinics and the like. You know, there is, there is a million doses of Pfizer in pharmacies at the moment- pardon me, Moderna and Pfizer at the moment. And so, you know, where some pharmacies have run out, others have still got stuff on the shelves. So we're also working with them, Laura, to, to get the vaccines to where the demand is immediately. It's- you know, it's a huge logistical challenge, but the supply is there, we've just got to make sure it gets to the, to the right places.
LAURA JAYES:
Okay. So what happens if you're a pharmacy, you're a GP, or, you're a clinic and you're running out of booster shots today, how quickly can you get them?
JOHN FREWEN:
Yeah. So look, if, if there is an emergency order required, they can contact the Vaccine Operations Centre here in the Taskforce, and we can work to get deliveries to them as quickly as we can. But, but even quicker than that sometimes is the option that we can identify where there is stock available nearby and we can arrange a transfer immediately between those facilities. So again, we're, we're working closely with both the GPs and the pharmacists. There's no shortage of supply, it's just getting it to the right places is the challenge now.
LAURA JAYES:
Okay. So we've got enough, it's just getting it to those right places.
JOHN FREWEN:
Yeah.
LAURA JAYES:
So is this going to take a couple of weeks just because of the changed ATAGI advice? And if it changes again, that's going to be a problem too?
JOHN FREWEN:
Yeah. So look, the- you know, we've delivered a million boosters - that's a fantastic achievement. That's people coming forward, and I really do encourage people to keep coming forward as quick they can. You know, to the [audio skip] 90 per cent [audio skips] Australians responded remarkably. It's been a massive [audio skip] challenge [audio skips].
LAURA JAYES:
[Audio skip] a clinic or a pharmacy just before Christmas [indistinct] slightly earlier…
JOHN FREWEN:
[Talks over] Yeah. Look, there is a bit of flexibility. I mean, certainly- Yeah, if you're- particularly if you're a vulnerable person, or, you know, maybe you're travelling overseas and the, the window's about right, then the guidance is that a little bit of flexibility can be can be, can be displayed. But you know, five months ideally is when people fall due, and we, we encourage them to get in as quickly as they can from five months onwards.
LAURA JAYES:
And just quickly. Kids, Jan 10- January 10. That's when that's going to happen? No earlier?
JOHN FREWEN:
[Talks over] Yep. No. No. We're, we're on track to get delivery of the paediatric doses between Christmas and New Year. There'll be a process of testing them, then we'll need to get them distributed. But we're on track for 10 Jan at the moment, and we're really looking forward to, to getting as many kids done as we can before they get back to school next year.
LAURA JAYES:
Yes, indeed. Lots of happy parents. And General Frewen, thanks so much for your time. We'll speak soon.
JOHN FREWEN:
Thanks, Laura.
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