Australia's finance minister stated that the country is in the back of the Pfizer vaccines queue, contrary to assurances made by Scott Morrison, the prime minister, and the health minister.Simon Birmingham said Thursday that Australia is facing supply problems because European countries have preferred to use high levels of Covid for vaccine delivery.Birmingham explained that this has meant that countries such as Australia and New Zealand are not receiving some of these vaccines.They are coming.Australia's Pfizer and other vaccines mRNA are expected to arrive in the 3rd quarter of 2012. After the federal government had denied any request for additional supply, Queensland declared on Wednesday that it would run out Pfizer vaccines within eight days.Multiple state leaders have criticised the prime minister's suggestion that anyone under 40 should contact their GPs in order to get the AstraZeneca vaccination, despite fears of blood clots. Each state, including Victoria, Victoria, New South Wales, and Western Australia, has distanced itself from the suggestion.On Thursday, data showed that only 7.92% of Australians 16 years and older were fully vaccinated.After a survey by the Royal Australia College of General Practitioners, 92% of respondents felt that Australia needs to be educated and increased public awareness, the Royal Australia College of General Practitioners (RACGP), called for a national vaccine campaign. The government has released a simple video campaign, in which Dr Nick Coatsworth (ex-deputy chief medical officer) speaks directly to the camera, asking people to get vaccinated.I only ever see Dr Nick Coatsworth wearing a stethoscope around the neck. He is saying, "Trust the government, get vaccinated," Burnet Institute Epidemiologist Prof Mike Toole said to the RACGP. It is unlikely that this will convince anyone who is hesitant about the vaccine.The ad was mocked for its lack creativity and emotive appeal. The RACGP warned that anti-vaxxers were filling the void.02:16 Compare Australia's vaccine ad campaign with the rest of worldLt. Gen John Frewen who is responsible for the vaccine rollout said earlier this week that the government has yet to launch what was called a "rallying national vaccination ad campaign" due to the shortage of Pfizer supplies.He stated that the timing of the campaign was based on the supply of Pfizer. He said in a separate interview that he did not start the campaign until he was confident that we could meet the demand we expect to generate by the campaign.On Thursday, 27 cases of Covid-19 were confirmed in Australia. Large swathes of the country remained under lockdown. This led to heated debate about international arrivals.Australia has been closed its borders for over a year with strict entry and departure requirements. This left approximately 40,000 Australians stranded abroad. There is growing frustration among those living in Australia as Europe, the UK, and other developed countries reopen international travel.Daniel Andrews, the Victorian premier, demanded a 80% reduction of the hotel quarantine capacity over the next three to 4 months, until the vaccination rollout ramps-up.Anastasia Palaszczuk (Queensland premier) warned Wednesday night that Australia could lose the chance to vaccinate its population before larger outbreaks. She also called for a decrease in the arrival capacity and the transfer of quarantine to regional facilities, away from densely-populated areas.She told local media that we have experienced a moment of magic here. It was a moment we will never get back. Now, I worry that we may have missed the opportunity.
