Australians to get early access to coronavirus vaccine in January: Morrison

Australia expects to receive its first batch of potential coronavirus vaccine in January after it struck a deal with pharmaceutical companies. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said that the government signed a $1.7 billion supply and production agreement under which the University of Oxford/AstraZeneca and the University of Queensland/CSL will provide more than 84.8 million vaccine doses.

“Australians will gain free access to a COVID-19 vaccine in 2021 if trials prove successful,” the Prime Minister said in a statement.

The government has struck a deal with CSL Ltd to manufacture two potential coronavirus vaccines - one developed by Oxford University/AstraZeneca and the other by CSL’s own labs in collaboration with the University of Queensland. Australians will have free access to more than 84.8 million vaccine doses, with early access to 3.8 million doses of AZD1222, Oxford University/AstraZeneca-developed vaccine candidate, in January and February 2021.

“There are no guarantees that these vaccines will prove successful, however, the agreement puts Australia at the top of the queue, if our medical experts give the vaccines the green light,” added Morrison.

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Lockdown extended

The announcement comes at a time when authorities have extended a strict lockdown in Melbourne by two weeks, citing not enough decline in COVID-19 cases. However, the Australian state of Victoria, the epicentre of the second wave, has reported 41 coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, the lowest single-day surge since June 26.

Australia has reported 26,322 confirmed cases of coronavirus across the country with over 97 per cent recovery rate and 762 related deaths so far. Morrison acknowledged that the AstraZeneca vaccine candidate is in a more advanced stage while the University of Queensland still has some work to do, but the government is fully backing it.

“By securing the production and supply agreements, Australians will be among the first in the world to receive a safe and effective vaccine, should it pass late-stage testing,” said Morrison.

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