Media Release
The agreement by National Cabinet that the States and Territories harmonise legislation and regulation to allow Covid-19 vaccinations to occur in community pharmacies has been welcomed by the Pharmacy Guild of Australia.
National President of the Pharmacy Guild George Tambassis said the agreement by National Cabinet paved the way to a wider rollout of the Covid-19 vaccination program.
“With more than 5,900 community pharmacies spread out across Australia, there is broad accessibility for all residents to access vaccinations via this network.” Mr Tambassis said.
“Many of these pharmacies also are open extended hours and at weekends, making it even easier for communities to get their Covid-19 vaccination.”
Mr Tambassis said harmonisation of legislation and regulation also was an important step in the Covid-19 vaccination rollout.
“It is crucial that all States and Territories are on the same page in allowing the Covid-19 vaccination to be delivered in community pharmacies,” he said.
“Having different laws covering different jurisdictions would only slow the rollout and potentially put Australians at risk.”
Mr Tambassis also welcomed the fact that National Cabinet had noted the detailed vaccine rollout plans. It found published efficacy data, particularly from the United Kingdom, strongly supported Australia’s choice of both the rollout of the Pfizer and the AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccines.
National Cabinet also stressed the Commonwealth, States and Territories are progressively scaling up vaccination sites as increased supplies of vaccines become available.
Text by: The Pharmacy Guild of Australia
