AUSTRALIANS must brace for a major outbreak of COVID-19 “anywhere in the country” says the Editor-in-Chief of the Medical Journal of Australia, Laureate Professor Nick Talley AC.
Speaking in an exclusive podcast, Professor Talley also said the emerging data made it clear that children should be vaccinated.
The podcast, produced by the MJA, is free to access and is available now at:
Highlights:
- “Some people seem to think we can have a leisurely pace – that isn’t something [I can] agree with”;
- “The sooner we have most people vaccinated, the safer Australia is going to be – it’s still going to be a problem with this virus, but nothing like the risk we're currently running”;
- “Hotels haven't done too badly … but the trouble is, it's still too many – every few weeks we're getting an outbreak, or at least somebody is potentially contaminating others. At some point, one of those is going to escape and cause havoc”;
- “It's very clear that we need a better system of quarantining our [returning] travellers – this is overdue”;
- “If one-third of the population will not get vaccinated despite everything, we will not have herd immunity with any of the vaccines we use”.
- Cate Swannell
Correspondence:
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