More than 1000 General Practices (GPs), including several in Bonner will join the COVID-19 vaccination program from next week, further strengthening the Commonwealth’s capacity, and ensuring an efficient and equitable distribution of vaccines across the country.

Federal Member for Bonner Ross Vasta MP said services would come online from March 22.

“We all know the invaluable work our local GP’s do for our community,” Mr Vasta said.

“Now we will see them play a vital role the COVID-19 vaccine rollout.

“Phase 1B of the rollout will see 1000 GP’s across Australia delivering COVID-19 vaccines for our elderly and immunocompromised, progressively increasing in number to more than 4000 by the end of April.”

Initial GP clinics in Bonner offering the COVID-19 vaccine include:

• Baywest Medical Centre, Wynnum West
• Carina Medical and Specialist Centre, Carina
• Wynnum Medical Centre, Tingalpa
• Manly Clinic, Wynnum
• Manly Village Medical, Manly
• Mansfield Family Practice, Mansfield
• Tyack Health, Manly West
• Carindale Medical Clinic, Carindale
• Eight Mile Plains Doctors, Eight Mile Plains

Mr Vasta said Australians eligible for Phase 1B could find a vaccination provider through the new national vaccination information and location service, at the Department of Health website.

“This will enable people to locate their nearest general practice providing General Practice Respiratory Clinic vaccinations and link through to their online booking system or phone number to make the appointment” Mr Vasta said.

“Vaccines are the game changer in our fight against the COVID-19 virus and I urge everyone in Australia to come forward and get vaccinated when they are able to. It will protect themselves, their family, and their community.”

In making the announcement, Federal Minister for Health and Aged Care Greg Hunt MP said the rollout would continue to grow in coming weeks.

“This staged scale up will align with the supply of the locally produced AstraZeneca vaccine, and as more vaccine becomes available more services will come online,” Minister Hunt said.

“General practices will play a major role in ensuring all Australians who seek to be vaccinated have access to safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines.

“We are committed to making sure that every Australian that wants a vaccine will be able to be vaccinated,” Minister Hunt said.

Phase 1B includes vulnerable groups, such as older people and people with certain underlying medical conditions. No-one is better placed to support these people than our general practices.

Over 100 Aboriginal Health Services and 130 Commonwealth operated GP-led Respiratory Clinics, who have been instrumental partners in the COVID-19 response to date will also be progressively added as additional vaccine providers.

Appointments on the service finder will increase as general practices establish their systems and vaccine supply. More appointments will become available as more clinics come on-board.

People will still be able to book their vaccine appointments directly at a participating general practice – as they do now, for instance, to get a seasonal flu vaccine.

As the rollout moves into Phase two, additional general practices and selected community pharmacists will also participate in the program. No-one will miss out, whether they live in a city or country town or a very remote area.

There will be six million Australians in Phase 1B, and not all will be able to be vaccinated immediately. We recognise that every Australian will have the opportunity to be vaccinated over the coming months and we thank every Australian for their patience.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Where do I go and how do I book in?

Go to Department of Health website. Using the Eligibility Checker, you can find out which phase of the rollout you are in. If you are eligible, you will be able to view vaccination clinics and book an appointment online or via phone. If you are not yet eligible, you will be able to register your interest so that you can be notified when you are able to book.

If you prefer not to use the online option, you can call the National Coronavirus and COVID-19 Vaccination Helpline on 1800 020 080.

Will I be able to choose where I can book?

You will be able to view and select clinic locations based on the postcode you enter.

What happens if there are no clinics or appointments in my area?

A list of Commonwealth vaccination clinics, participating General Practices, and state and territory vaccination clinics will be made available as they come online.

Do I have to use the Eligibility Checker in order to book?

The checker is a helpful tool to help you find out if you are currently eligible to book.

The checker will guide you through to a simple way to find and book vaccine appointments, or help you register to be notified if you are part of a later phase. If you prefer to book appointments directly at a participating general practice or Commonwealth state vaccination clinic, you can contact them directly to do so.

From 1 November the Morrison Government will invest more than $86 million over the next four years to provide greater access to life saving medicines for Australians living with Multiple Sclerosis (MS), and various forms of cancer.

MS is the most commonly acquired neurological disease in younger adults with over 25,600 Australians living with MS and over 2.3 million people affected globally.

Minister for Health Greg Hunt MP said the average age of diagnosis was only 30 and around 75 per cent of those affected with MS in Australia were female.

“There is a high clinical need for effective treatments for patients with progressive forms of relapse onset multiple sclerosis,” Minister Hunt said.

Federal Member for Bonner Ross Vasta MP said Mayzent® (siponimod) would be listed on the PBS for the first time to treat those patients with secondary progressive multiple sclerosis.

“Without PBS subsidy, these patients would pay more than $25,000 per year for treatment with approximately 800 patients benefiting from this listing each year,” Mr Vasta said.

“The PBS subsidy now means patients will only need to pay $41 per prescription, or $6.60 with a concession card.”

In addition to this listing, Australians diagnosed with a rare type of lymphoma which affects the skin will receive subsidised access to a new medication and specialised treatment from 1 November 2020, through an investment of over $11.5 million.

Cutaneous T-cell lymphoma is a type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma that affects the skin and causes an accumulation of malignant T-cells in the skin, resulting in raised, rash-like or itchy patches of skin, skin lumps or ulcers and swollen lymph nodes.

Mr Vasta said Uvadex® (methoxsalen) would be listed on the PBS for the first time for treatment of patients with erythrodermic cutaneous T-cell lymphoma who have not responded to other treatments.

“Around 75 patients per year may benefit from this listing and without this PBS subsidy, these Australians would pay more than $3400 per year,” Mr Vasta said.

Other PBS listings from 1 November ­– announced in the Budget 2020-21 – include the expanded listing of:

• Tecentriq® and Avastin® (atezolizumab and bevacizumab) for use in combination to treat patients with advanced unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma, the most common type of primary liver cancer. An average of 500 patients per year may benefit from this. They would normally pay up to $170,000 for a course of treatment without PBS subsidy;
• Lynparza® (olaparib) for the treatment of newly diagnosed advanced high grade epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube or primary peritoneal cancers. An average of 300 patients per year may benefit from this listing and would normally pay around $140,500 per course of treatment for this medicine.

These PBS listings have been recommended by the independent Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee.

Since 2013, the Australian Government has approved over 2,450 new or amended listings on the PBS.

This represents an average of around 30 listings or amendments per month – or one each day – at an overall investment by the Government of $11.8 billion.

The Morrison Government’s commitment to ensuring that Australians can access affordable medicines, when they need them, remains rock solid.