Patients with neurological conditions will be among those in the next priority group for COVID-19 vaccine when phase 1b of the rollout commences on 22 March.
With phase 1a having targeted frontline COVID-19 workers to receive Pfizer’s vaccine (‘Comirnaty’) through clinic hubs, the next phase, 1b, is planned to deliver up to 15 million doses of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine via GPs to groups including the elderly, Indigenous Australians, other frontline workers and people with specific medical conditions that put them at risk of COVID-19
In its advice on priority groups for COVID-19 vaccination in Australia, the Department of Health states that the medical conditions conferring risk of COVID-19 include people with neurological conditions such as stroke, dementia and ‘other’.
The priority list also includes people with conditions such as chronic inflammatory disease, lung disease and uncontrolled high blood pressure, as well as some groups on immunosuppressive therapies or with immunodeficiency.
People with underlying conditions will need to provide proof of them to demonstrate their eligibility for vaccination via MyHealth record, a health professional referral if required or a declaration form.
In phase 1b, the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine will be made available through GPs and Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services. The government’s COVID-19 information site says that patients will not be able to choose which vaccine they receive and that “specific vaccines will be administered based on availability and subject to any determination made by the TGA. “
However some immunisation experts have suggested that people with high risk medical conditions such as haematological cancers should be targeted for the Pfizer vaccine because of its higher efficacy over the AstraZeneca vaccine.