'The Pfizer vaccine news is exciting, but don't throw away your mask yet'
The announcement from Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech that their coronavirus vaccine appears to be 90 per cent effective thrilled medical experts around the world and presented a glimmer of hope for people weary of the burdens of fighting a battle that the virus seems to be winning.
"The results are really quite good, I mean extraordinary," said the normally more measured Dr Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and one of the US' most trusted authorities on the COVID-19 pandemic.
Pfizer's announcement has been met by mixed reaction.Credit:Bloomberg
"Today is a great day for science and humanity," declared Albert Bourla, Pfizer chairman and CEO, whose company's shares soared by about 10 per cent in early trading on the New York Stock Exchange, amid a major rally in the broader stock market.
Yet it's still much too early to declare the battle against COVID-19 won. Many details about the Pfizer trial are still unknown, and even the data the company released Monday have not been peer-reviewed. As more information becomes available, the initial euphoria may dissipate.
Moreover, even if the vaccine fully lives up to these preliminary results, challenges in manufacturing and distributing the product loom large.
Pfizer says it's prepared to produce globally "up to 50 million vaccine doses in 2020 and up to 1.3 billion doses in 2021".
The vaccine requires two doses per person for full effectiveness. That means that there won't be enough to go around for high-priority recipients such as first-responders and seniors until sometime next year, and for wider global distribution until 2022 at the earliest.
"The challenge before us is still immense and growing," President-elect Joe Biden said on Monday (US time), as he announced 13 members of his coronavirus task force, which will be co-chaired by former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner David Kessler, former Surgeon-General Vivek Murthy and Yale healthcare expert Marcella Nunez-Smith.
"It's clear that this vaccine, even if approved, will not be widely available for many months yet to come," Biden cautioned. In the meantime, "the single most effective thing we can do to stop the spread of COVID - wear a mask".
Like many vaccines, Pfizer's requires super-cold storage - minus 80 degrees Celsius (minus 112 degrees Fahrenheit) until just before it's administered. Although such storage lockers are commonly available for pharmacies, hospitals and medical offices, they may be scarce in less-developed countries or even in poorer areas of developed countries.
"The cold-chain requirements for this vaccine ... will have to be addressed if the vaccine is to be made broadly available," Richard Hatchett, CEO of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, an Oslo-based vaccine development think tank, said Monday.
"It's not like all of a sudden this vaccine is going to be made available or meet global demand," Natalie Dean, an expert on vaccine and epidemiology at the University of Florida, says.
"We're going to need a lot more."
McClatchy
Latest updates
No Remembrance Day services in Melbourne
By Ashleigh McMillan
COVID risks mean Victoria’s usual Remembrance Day services will not be able to go ahead.
Premier Daniel Andrews said although many would like to remember the sacrifices made for "liberty, freedom and democracy" by our Diggers in the usual manner tomorrow, it would not be possible.
He said Remembrance Day events could not be regulated in the same way as a cafe or restaurant.
The poppy wall at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne last year.Credit:Getty
"I think everybody is upset to think that we can’t honour the service and sacrifice of so many fellow Victorians in that normal way," Mr Andrews said this morning.
"This is another important event – for many a sacred day – that has been impacted by a one-in-100-year global pandemic.
"To march down the forecourt of the Shrine on [November 11] every year, it’s a great honour and a privilege. And I’d like nothing more than to be there.
"But this is not an ordinary year ... on Anzac Day, we found new and innovative ways to honour and respect the sacrifice of so many, and we will do that tomorrow."
Remembrance Day marks the armistice that ended World War I on November 11, 1918. Almost 62,000 Australians died fighting in four years of global conflict. On this day Australians observe one minute's silence at 11am to honour those who have served and those who have died in war and on peacekeeping and humanitarian operations.
Face masks to remain mandatory in Victoria until it's 'safe'
By Ashleigh McMillan
Premier Daniel Andrews has said there will eventually be changes made to mask rules in Victoria, but only "when it’s safe".
Victorians are required to wear masks when they leave home in all parts of the state, except people with a medical exemption or in settings where it is not practical to do so, like when eating a meal.
Face masks will be mandatory in Victoria until it is safe to change the rule, the Premier says.Credit:Joe Armao
"As unpleasant as it can be, particularly as the weather gets warmer, it is serving a purpose," Mr Andrews told reporters this morning.
"Will masks be there forever? No. Will masks be there outside forever? Of course not.
"We’ll make changes when it’s appropriate to do so … compare the discomfort of wearing a mask with the discomfort of the palace being closed again, that’s the criteria I’m working on.
"As long as I and the medical team think masks are serving a purpose, masks will stay. Whether it’s in exactly the same format - I don’t think so. There will be changes, but they will be made when it’s safe."
Watch live: NSW COVID-19 border operation update
NSW Superintendent Paul Smith is speaking in Albury about ongoing controls on the NSW-Victorian border.
Police are urging people who need to cross the border to come prepared and be ready to produce their exemption, as well as other relevant documents and identification information.
'The Pfizer vaccine news is exciting, but don't throw away your mask yet'
The announcement from Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech that their coronavirus vaccine appears to be 90 per cent effective thrilled medical experts around the world and presented a glimmer of hope for people weary of the burdens of fighting a battle that the virus seems to be winning.
"The results are really quite good, I mean extraordinary," said the normally more measured Dr Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and one of the US' most trusted authorities on the COVID-19 pandemic.
Pfizer's announcement has been met by mixed reaction.Credit:Bloomberg
"Today is a great day for science and humanity," declared Albert Bourla, Pfizer chairman and CEO, whose company's shares soared by about 10 per cent in early trading on the New York Stock Exchange, amid a major rally in the broader stock market.
Yet it's still much too early to declare the battle against COVID-19 won. Many details about the Pfizer trial are still unknown, and even the data the company released Monday have not been peer-reviewed. As more information becomes available, the initial euphoria may dissipate.
Moreover, even if the vaccine fully lives up to these preliminary results, challenges in manufacturing and distributing the product loom large.
Pfizer says it's prepared to produce globally "up to 50 million vaccine doses in 2020 and up to 1.3 billion doses in 2021".
The vaccine requires two doses per person for full effectiveness. That means that there won't be enough to go around for high-priority recipients such as first-responders and seniors until sometime next year, and for wider global distribution until 2022 at the earliest.
"The challenge before us is still immense and growing," President-elect Joe Biden said on Monday (US time), as he announced 13 members of his coronavirus task force, which will be co-chaired by former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner David Kessler, former Surgeon-General Vivek Murthy and Yale healthcare expert Marcella Nunez-Smith.
"It's clear that this vaccine, even if approved, will not be widely available for many months yet to come," Biden cautioned. In the meantime, "the single most effective thing we can do to stop the spread of COVID - wear a mask".
Like many vaccines, Pfizer's requires super-cold storage - minus 80 degrees Celsius (minus 112 degrees Fahrenheit) until just before it's administered. Although such storage lockers are commonly available for pharmacies, hospitals and medical offices, they may be scarce in less-developed countries or even in poorer areas of developed countries.
"The cold-chain requirements for this vaccine ... will have to be addressed if the vaccine is to be made broadly available," Richard Hatchett, CEO of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, an Oslo-based vaccine development think tank, said Monday.
"It's not like all of a sudden this vaccine is going to be made available or meet global demand," Natalie Dean, an expert on vaccine and epidemiology at the University of Florida, says.
"We're going to need a lot more."
McClatchy
New technology to alert Sydney commuters about full trains
By Josh Dye
Sydney commuters will be able to receive real-time notifications about the capacity of their train service via new technology.
The opt-in system will be available to registered Opal card holders who have the Opal app on their mobile phone.
Passengers wear masks on a train between Central and Wynyard stations in Sydney.Credit:Janie Barrett
Commuters will be able to receive alerts half an hour before their regular train to see how full it is.
NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance touted the new technology as “a world-leading piece of innovation”.
The system will be rolled out on buses and light rail at a later date.
Mr Constance said there has not yet been evidence of COVID-19 spreading by community transmission on public transport, although he acknowledged it could have occurred.
He urged people to wear masks on public transport but said they would not become mandatory.
“I don’t want to create a culture where we start having these big sticks waved to the community and the community don’t hear and respond to the messaging that’s going out,” Mr Constance said. “We don’t need to put punitive measures in place, fining people and denying them a service.”
Victorian kids to get free kindergarten next year, Andrews announces
By Kate Lahey and Ashleigh McMillan
Kindergarten will be free for Victorian children next year, Premier Daniel Andrews has announced this morning.
The 2020/21 budget will deliver up to $169.6 million to make kinder free next year, saving families about $2000 for every child enrolled in a participating funded kindergarten program.
Kinder will be free for Victorian kids next year.Credit:Luis Ascui
The measure is aimed at helping women back into work and reducing the stress of the balancing act many parents have faced in 2020, often working from home while managing and homeschooling young children.
Under the investment, subsidies will be offered to early childhood services providing funded kindergarten programs – meaning free kinder for four-year-olds and eligible three-year-olds attending a participating sessional kinder.
Families with children enrolled in kinder programs at a long daycare centre will also benefit from a saving of around $2000 in fees.
For families with children attending unfunded three-year-old programs in sessional kindergartens, there will also be reduced fees.
Ingrid Stitt, the Minister for Early Childhood, said the move was to ensure that "working families had that relief when they needed it most" following Victoria’s second COVID-19 wave.
"We recognise that women have been disproportionately affected by this pandemic, and we believe this ... will give cost-of-living pressure relief, but will also ensure women are able to participate in the workforce as we recover economically," she said.
Mr Andrews said 95 per cent of government primary schools across the state will run the before and after school programs.
Schools that don't currently have an after school program will be able to apply for grants of $75,000 for equipment, facilities and transport to support after school care programs.
"The only ones that won’t run it … are the very smallest of countries schools where it wouldn’t be viable. They’re very important, but I don’t know if they have demand for services like this, Mr Andrews said.
'Very promising' but more testing needed, Andrews says of Pfizer vaccine
By Ashleigh McMillan
The Victorian Premier says reports that a COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer has a 90 per cent efficiency rate are "very promising", but warns it will need to be tested further before it’s rolled out in the community.
Premier Daniel Andrews said while "all want to see a vaccine come as soon as possible", developers needed to make sure the vaccine lived up to the hype before it is used.
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews says further testing will show whether Pfizer's vaccine lives up to the hype.Credit:AP
"It’s got to go through a rigorous process to make sure that it’s safe, make sure the efficacy of the vaccine is proven so we know exactly the impact it will have across the Victorian community," he told reporters on Tuesday morning.
Victoria recorded its 11th consecutive day of zero new cases today after 12,955 tests were carried out on Monday. No further deaths have been recorded making it a so-called double "doughnut day".
Two Victorians remain in hospital with coronavirus.
There are no active cases in healthcare workers or in people connected to aged care.
Regional Victoria remains COVID-free, with no active cases there.
"All in all, they are very impressive numbers," Mr Andrews said, "and they speak to the absolute determination of the Victorian community to stay safe and stay open".
What do you love about Melbourne?
My colleague Greg Baum, who like many of us is relishing our newfound freedoms in Victoria, likened exercising during Melbourne's tough stage four lockdown to walking around a prison yard.
Now, the streets are buzzing again and Victorians are celebrating the 11th day in a row of no new coronavirus cases and no further deaths. Seeing people back in coffee shops – a long black in hand while ordering poached eggs and avocado sourdough – certainly brings a smile to my face. What do you love about our town?
Victorians are spending big post-lockdown
By Shane Wright
The ending of Victoria's coronavirus restrictions has been welcomed by a surge in spending across the state.
Data collected by the Commonwealth Bank from its network of debit and credit cards and released this morning showed spending in Victoria up 16 percentage points between late October and the first week of November.
Victorians are spending again on food services and buying household furnishings and equipment and clothing.
Spending across Victoria is now 15 per cent up on the same time last year, stronger than NSW (13 per cent) and in line with Queensland.
"The easing of restrictions in Victoria and the prospect of more open internal borders saw card spending surge," senior CBA economist Belinda Allen said.
"The lift in spending highlights the importance of confidence in the health outcome and the level of income support in the Australian economy at present."
In Victoria, there was a huge lift in spending on household furnishings and equipment, clothing and food services.
Personal care services, such as hairdressers, surged on the opening of restrictions. In late October, spending in this sector was 50 per cent down on a year ago. Last week, it was more than 30 per cent above.
Alcohol services (such as pubs and clubs) is still down on a year ago but also posted a big weekly increase.
Overall spending nationally was up 13 per cent on a year ago last week compared to 6 per cent in the final week of October.
Goods spending is up 21 per cent, a 5 percentage point lift from its previous reading.
But spending on services lifted 10 percentage points to now sit in positive territory.
Spending on food goods, mostly through supermarkets and grocery stores, is 19 per cent up on a year ago.
Food services spending, which includes cafes and restaurants, is up 15 per cent on the same week in 2019.
Victoria's run of zero-case days
This calendar tracks Victoria's run of zero-case and zero-death days ..
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