COVID AND THE VACCINE - TRUTH, LIES, AND MISCONCEPTIONS REVEALED, page-86383

New health minister new edicts, I wonder if they have AZ available for this time because that's all they offered me because of my twilight years. 'Cutting edge' they say, cutting edge to cut me down in my prime!

Sorry Mark, go and find the gullible, I might be old and decrepit, but NOT stupid!

If he offered Viagra I might indeed get a surge! Balls in your court!


Warning to vaccinate as COVID-19 cases surge

A new wave of COVID-19 cases is hitting the nation, as experts warn people to remain vigilant and stay up to date with their vaccines as we enter the festive season.

Associate Professor James Trauer, head of the epidemiological modelling unit at Monash University, says there is a surge of COVID-19 infections spreading through the community.

“Vaccination remains our most important defence against COVID, even though the virus shouldn’t ruin Christmas this year,” he said on Wednesday.

COVID-19 is now an endemic virus, which means it cannot be eliminated and is continuously transmitted.

Surges in coronavirus cases were generally caused by new variants, which meant it was “more difficult than ever to predict” when these waves would peak, Trauer said.

“Our most important protection against the effects of COVID is immunity, which can be enhanced through vaccination,” he said.

With a marked decline in testing, the daily number of cases does not paint a clear picture of the spread of the virus, though researchers can still use hospital admission numbers and wastewater surveillance to monitor COVID-19 waves.

The severity of coronavirus cases has decreased and fewer Australians are being admitted to the intensive care unit because of high levels of population immunity, but federal Health Minister Mark Butler emphasised that the virus “hasn’t gone away”.

“The booster rate is not what we saw in the first few years of the pandemic,” he said.

“I’m particularly concerned that older Australians get out there and get their booster.”

New COVID-19 vaccines, which target common variants of the virus, will be made available from next month.

“They’re the cutting edge most up-to-date vaccines, but thankfully the vaccines that are currently in pharmacies and in general practice are ... also very, very effective at protecting you from severe disease or death,” Butler said.

AAP