DAVID CAMPBELL:
Now, I want to bring in COVID-19 Task Force Commander, Lieutenant General John Frewen, in Canberra. Lieutenant General, good morning to you. Limits and masks have been scrapped in most venues and the unvaccinated now have the same freedom. So what's your message to people who are yet to get this jab?
JOHN FREWEN:
Yeah, hi David. Great to speak with you this morning. Look, we're now up over 80 per cent fully vaccinated across all of the states and territories. And in the next few days, we're going to hit the 90 per cent fully vaccinated mark nationally, which is fantastic, and people have done a great job in coming forward. But we've seen now- we're shifting from the Delta variant to the Omicron variant. The Omicron variant is moving very quickly, and the best possible protection you can have is to be vaccinated. For those people who are already vaccinated, it's important the booster. But for those people who are still getting around to getting vaccinated, I really encourage them to get it done before Christmas as we go back into a Christmas season where we're going to enjoy, hopefully, far more of the freedoms that we've been looking forward to get back to.
DAVID CAMPBELL:
Well, as you say, it does move very quickly, this variant. We're seeing that right now in real-time. The Government has warned the roadmap will be fine-tuned due to this Omicron outbreak - would the threat of further restrictions encourage people to get vaxxed?
JOHN FREWEN:
Yeah, look outbreaks have- we've seen an uptake spike wherever there's been an outbreak. I think people are watching Omicron very closely. I know people are very concerned about, you know, any potential for, sort of, you know, lockdowns or impositions to their Christmas holidays. Now, you know, hopefully we are through all of that. We've got these fantastic rates of vaccination, but we do need to keep COVID-safe practises in place, and just to make sure we keep topping up our best levels of protection. And right now, for those people who are due for a booster, I really encourage them that the best thing they can do before Christmas is to get their booster.
DAVID CAMPBELL:
Well, the boosters are going to get a big boost as well, because the Moderna vaccine has been approved this week. Now, it's going to be made in Melbourne by 2024 - how does this change Australia's fight against COVID and other potential pandemics moving forward?
JOHN FREWEN:
Yeah, well that capacity is going to be a little bit further down the track. But, you know, I think it's fantastic. We've had domestic production of AstraZeneca the whole way through this, which has been really important to us. I think having additional production capacity domestically sets us up, you know, much better for future pandemics, for example. But you mentioned Moderna approved as a booster. I went and had my Moderna yesterday in a community pharmacy. So you can get Pfizer, you can get Moderna now, there's lots of choice, and I really do encourage people to get out there and get it done.
DAVID CAMPBELL:
Any side effects? Sore arm? You feeling okay, Lieutenant General?
JOHN FREWEN:
Little bit of a sore arm, but otherwise great. I went to a community pharmacy; they were doing great work. I was very impressed with the staff there. They were- had people, sort of, you know, coming through in great droves, so it was great to see.
DAVID CAMPBELL:
As long as it's not your saluting arm, I'm sure we're all fine. Now, New South Wales Health Minister, Brad Hazzard, said that people aren't taking boosters seriously. Do you agree with that?
JOHN FREWEN:
Look, we've had- we're seeing the numbers tick up. So yesterday we did about 75,000- sorry, two days ago it was 75,000, yesterday was 96,000. I expect to see that punch through up into the more than 100,000 a day from here on in, and those numbers will just continue to climb. So I think there's been a really positive uptake so far, and I'm sure we're going to see those numbers just keep growing.
DAVID CAMPBELL:
Are you happy with restrictions easing in New South Wales?
JOHN FREWEN:
Yeah look, this- it's always been about getting to a point where we can live with COVID. You know, we're long beyond any sense of eradication. And vaccination has underpinned our approach to that, to the best mitigations we can put in place against COVID. So, you know, there's got to be a point to this vaccination. I said 80 per cent nationally fully vaccinated- pardon me, 80 per cent in every state and territory, but we're about to crest 90 per cent fully vaccinated for the nation. So that's a great achievement, and there's got to be return on that. But I encourage people to not only get vaccinated, but to keep COVID-safe practices at the front of their mind.
DAVID CAMPBELL:
All right, Lieutenant General John Frewen, we really do appreciate your time. Thanks for being on the show.
JOHN FREWEN:
Thanks, David.
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