COVID-19 Vaccine

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The Australian COVID-19 Vaccine options.

Australia has a few different options for a vaccine to reduce the infection rate for the Covid coronavirus.

Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine

The AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine has the advantage of being available very quickly and having a reasonable effective rate.  70% with 1 full doses,  or 90% using a half dose,  followed by a full dose.  It is also available in sufficient quantity to cover the entire population.

Pfizer vaccine

The Pfizer vaccine has an effective rate of 95%, but with only sufficient doses for 5 million people.

Australian Vaccine Plan.

Final vaccine testing has not yet been carried out,  so a final decision is yet to be made, but at the moment, the vaccination plan is for the Pfizer vaccine to be used for the higher risk population, and the AstraZeneca vaccine, available in greater numbers, to be used to protect the rest of the population.

Update: April 2021:

  • This has now changed around, with the AstraZeneca vaccine for the over 50s, and the Pfizer vaccine to be used for under 50s, who are classed as being at a higher population of getting a blood clot after the vaccine.
  • Researchers looking at the effectiveness of the vaccines have observed a significant reduction in infection risk starting at 12 days after the first dose, reaching 60% for AstraZeneca and 69% for Pfizer at 21–44 days compared with unvaccinated controls.