New figures show Scott Morrison’s so-called surge to close the COVID vaccine gap for Indigenous Australians has made the problem worse.
On 12 September, two weeks after the Government announced the surge, the vaccination gap for Indigenous Australians was 19.2 per cent. New figures show the blitz has seen the vaccine gap blow out to 26.5 per cent.
Yet again, the Government put all the work into the announcement and then sat back and considered the job done.
The Prime Minister didn’t order enough vaccines, rolled out a terrible communications strategy and left Indigenous Australians behind. He needs to stand up and take responsibility for failing on his promise to vaccinate Indigenous Australians by winter.
Overcrowding, poverty and lack of access to services mean many Indigenous Australians live in communities among the most vulnerable to COVID and face among the worst health outcomes when exposed to the virus.
Scott Morrison’s failure has left communities with low vaccination rates vulnerable to serious outbreaks, as the Moree cluster shows all too sadly.
It’s time the Prime Minister lived up to his promises for once and closed the vaccination gap.
Source: Department of Health, COVID-19 vaccine rollout update - 5 November 2021 and COVID-19 vaccination – Geographic vaccination rates – SA4 Indigenous population – 3 November 2021