A group of vulnerable Australians are yet to have a COVID-19 vaccine despite being in the first phase, with just a handful in some states getting a jab.
Fewer than 1000 disability care residents have received a COVID-19 vaccine, new figures show.
The disability royal commission on Monday heard from senior counsel assisting Kate Eastman that the vaccine rollout was an тАЬabject failureтАЭ.
But she said she understood the commission would need to hear the federal governmentтАЩs explanation about the low inoculation rates.
тАЬThese are people who represent some of our most vulnerable members of the population,тАЭ Ms Eastman said.
тАЬThe Australian government rollout of vaccines to people with disability in residential care – and these are people who represent some of the most vulnerable people in our population – has been an abject failure.тАЭ
Health Minister Greg Hunt said 999 disability residents had been vaccinated as of midday on Monday.
A further 1526 support workers had also received a jab.
Under the governmentтАЩs vaccine rollout plan, they were among the first priority group.
Mr Hunt said now that 60 per cent of residential aged care facilities had received a second visit, they were moving into the next stage of the disability rollout.
тАЬThose teams are being redeployed into disability (care facilities),тАЭ he said.
тАЬItтАЩs an intended sequential process and itтАЩs based on risk, and weтАЩre following that advice.тАЭ
He said people could also get vaccinated through providers, primary health networks and GPs.
The royal commission heard that at May 6, government figures for people with a disability in residential care showed:
тАУ In South Australia, just six people had received a vaccine, with only two receiving two doses
тАУ In Tasmania, just eight people had received a vaccine, with only two receiving two doses
Ms Eastman said the figures did not include people with a disability in residential care or support workers who had made their own arrangements to get vaccinated.
Royal Australasian College of Physicians president John Wilson called for greater vaccine data among the disability sector amid concerns about the slow pace.
тАЬThe governmentтАЩs daily vaccination updates do not provide comprehensive data about the progress of vaccination of people with disabilities,тАЭ Professor Wilson said.
тАЬThis may be masking the very low numbers of vaccinations that have been delivered in disability care settings.тАЭ
Opposition health spokesman Mark Butler said priority groups were supposed to be vaccinated by Easter тАУ six weeks ago.
тАЬNot even 1 per cent of Australians living in disability care have been fully vaccinated,тАЭ Mr Butler said.
тАЬBarely 4 per cent have even received a single dose.тАЭ
In total, more than 3.1 million vaccine doses have now been administered across Australia, including a big jump of more than 436,000 last week.
AustraliaтАЩs drug regulator is expected to clear a further 352,170 doses of Pfizer vaccine, which arrived in Australia on Monday, and another million doses of AstraZeneca in coming days.
Zero cases of community transmission were recorded on Monday.
