Covid19 vaccination uptake and appropriateness and effectiveness of state mandates

Background

The Australian vaccination program was slow, inefficient and riddled with political interference for the better part of the first half of 2021. ScoMo famously - or notoriously, depending on one's opinion - said in the very outset that it was not a race. Come winter and the outbreaks that come with it (seriously, did no one predict that?), NSW and VIC was plunged into never ending lockdowns. This is when the above statement came back to bite the PM, in particular with the Victorian Labor government wasting no time in shifting the blame to the commonwealth in a desperate effort to divert attention from its own shortcomings. For the average Victorian, it was just dejavu. 

With a federal election looming, ScoMo had to turn the tide and get ready for his endgame. Enter Doherty Institute's modelling on the national plan to transition Australia's National COVID Response. I will not go into the intricate details of the different scenarios proposed by the modelling here, but suffice to say that it clearly demonstrated the benefits of getting to 80% coverage as soon as practicable. Not only that - it did also recommended this strategy to the government as the only way out. With the "science" to back him now, ScoMo just had to figure out how to get there. 

At the end of July 2021, just before the Doherty modelling was released, the nationwide vaccination rate was below 40% for one dose. There were supply issues, with NSW and VIC scrambling for more, and only people older than 40 were technically eligible. ScoMo's plan, going forward, was two-fold:

  1. Increase supply by sourcing more vaccines - by begging, borrowing and succumbing to Big Pharma's notoriously unilateral demands.
  2. Make arrangements with state leaders at National Cabinet to introduce measures to rapidly increase vaccine uptake (with the ability to distance himself from any unpopular ones, thanks to the secrecy behind the Nat Cab doors).
He made himself clear that he expects all states to follow through with the plan after the public did their bit. He also made an assurance that the vaccines will never be mandatory (except in limited settings like aged care), and that he is not considering giving a financial incentive in return for being vaccinated.


Mandatory or voluntary?  

It appears that the release of the modelling and the government messaging that followed along with increased supply did result in widespread uptake of the vaccine, well on its way to get to 70% double dose by end of October in most states. However, states started rolling out mandates to a wide range of occupations from early October while restricting unvaccinated people access to services, seemingly on a bid to vaccinate as many as possible. Despite the PM still maintaining that the commonwealth's position is that vaccines are voluntary, it is hard to think of anyone else having the audacity to utter such garbage. 

Interestingly, Senator Pauline Hanson introduced a bill seeking to ban vaccine mandates, which was voted for by five coalition MPs. The government voted against it.


The law and ethics  



Politics and social manipulation



Effectiveness



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