From ABC
For the past five-and-a-half years, vaccines against SARS‑CoV‑2, the virus that causes COVID-19, have been free for everyone living in Australia.
But that’s about to change.
From October 1, only people at highest risk of severe COVID-19 disease will get the jab for free.
What does that mean for Australians more broadly and their access to the jab? And will this lead to more COVID-19 cases?
Who can still get a free COVID-19 vaccine?
From October 1, free COVID-19 vaccines will still be available for:
- Adults 75 and over (two doses per year, about six months apart)
- Adults 65–74 years (one dose per year)
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 50–74 years (one dose per year)
- Adults aged 18–64 years with severely immunocompromising conditions (one dose per year). This includes people with chronic kidney disease on dialysis and people with leukaemia. If in doubt, have a chat to your doctor.
How much will the COVID-19 vaccine cost?
We don’t know yet.
And we may not know until the last week of September, according to Pharmaceutical Society of Australia vaccination ambassador and community pharmacist Julianna Neill.
That’s because conversations are still ongoing with manufacturers about what the wholesale price for Australia will be.
“Normally we go from knowing what a private vaccination cost is going to be, and then it becomes free,” Ms Neill says.
“We’ve never really been in this situation before.”
Australians typically pay between $25 and $35 for their annual flu jab, but Ms Neill anticipates the COVID-19 vaccine will cost “significantly more”.
