Australia buys a MILLION Pfizer Covid vaccine doses from Poland to vaccinate a specific group of Sydneysiders after record case spike
Australia has bought an extra million doses of Pfizer's Covid vaccine from Poland and will use half of them to mass-vaccinate Sydneysiders.
About 530,000 of the additional Pfizer doses will be used for adults in the 20-39 age group in the 12 key local government areas worst affected in Sydney.
The new doses are on their way to Australia after negotiations with the Eastern European country to take surplus doses off its hands.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the million doses were in addition to the 40 million Pfizer shots arriving in batches since the start of the year.
Australia has bought an extra million doses of Pfizer 's Covid vaccine from Poland and will use them to mass-vaccinate Sydneysiders, Prime Minister Scott Morrison, pictured, has revealed
'These 1 million doses of hope, which will give people right across the country, particularly in NSW,' he said.
'They are fighting this Delta strain in the most significant battle we have had in this country during the course of the Covid-19 pandemic up until now.
'This allocation of the doses is based directly on the advice that I have received from the Chief Medical Officer.
'This will give everyone aged 20-39 in the 12 LGAs the opportunity to be vaccinated.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the million doses were in addition to the 40 million Pfizer shots arriving in batches since the start of the year. Seen here is a Year 12 student being vaccinated at Sydney Olympic Park on Monday
'His advice is based on that Doherty modelling and other work they have done about how the transmissibility of the virus works on those most affected areas and can be addressed through these additional doses.
'The doses will be administered through the NSW Government system, and as I said, they are arriving late tonight, they will go through that process of delivery over the course of the next week.
'Further doses will turn up over the course of this week, and the balance of the doses will be provided to the remaining states and territories on a per capita basis.'
About 175,000 of the doses will be sent to Victoria, where Melbourne is in its sixth lockdown with growing case number, including 25 on Sunday.
The new doses are on their way to Australia after negotiations with the Eastern European country to take surplus doses in a deal confirmed by Foreign Minister Marise Payne
NSW recorded its darkest day since the Covid-19 pandemic began on Saturday with 466 new infections and another 415 reported on Sunday.
By Saturday evening, the state was told another 26 venues had been exposed to the virus.
Everyone in NSW was thrown into lockdown at 5pm on Saturday following the record-breaking number of infections - along with four deaths.
The boost comes as New South Wales recorded its darkest day since the Covid-19 pandemic began on Saturday with 466 new infections and another 415 reported on Sunday
A statement from the Polish Embassy in Canberra said the current crisis in NSW prompted the non-profit deal.
It said Poland recently offered to share vaccines mainly with low and middle-income countries, including its Eastern neighbours and Balkan countries.
'The decision to also add Australia to the list was taken against the backdrop of the current outbreak of Delta variant in the country,' it said.