Australia

Australia falls 85% short of vaccine delivery goal

March 31, 2021 1:43 pm

Australia has only administered about 600,000 vaccine doses so far. [Source: BBC]

Australia has fallen 3.4 million doses short of its target of delivering four million COVID vaccinations by 31 March, prompting criticism of the government.

The 85% shortfall comes two days after Brisbane entered another snap lockdown to combat a small outbreak.

Last week the government said the vaccine rollout did not demand urgency given Australia’s low infection rates.

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The country has recorded 909 deaths and 29,300 cases since the pandemic began – far fewer than many other nations.

But sporadic outbreaks have led to six lockdowns in cities in recent months. Critics say situations like Brisbane’s outbreak show why a quick vaccine programme is still needed.

Brisbane’s two clusters have been linked to a nurse and a doctor who contracted the virus from a COVID ward at the same hospital.