The Australian Government has contracted ASPEN to continue the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine for people with disability living in residential accommodation of two or more people eligible under phase 1a.

The rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine will ramp up with ASPEN from early May 2021, initially targeting the smaller states and territories; the Australian Capital Territory and Northern Territory. They will then expand to other states and territories.

The Australian Government is also negotiating with more vaccine providers to support the phase 1a disability rollout across the remaining states and territories. The department will continue to provide further updates once these providers are engaged.

You can also find resources and information about the COVID-19 vaccine rollout from the dedicated web page for disability service providers and Information for people with disability about COVID-19 vaccines webpage on the Health website.

Update on how disability workers can access the vaccine After recent discussions at National Cabinet and changes in advice from the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI), workers in residential disability care will receive a COVID-19 vaccine depending on their age, in line with ATAGI’s recommendations:

• people aged 50 years and over will receive the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, and

• people aged under 50 years will receive the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine. Disability workers aged 50 and over can access the AstraZeneca vaccine at their local GP, GP-led Respiratory Clinic or Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Service (ACCHS).

Participating clinics can be found on the eligibility checker. Disability workers aged under 50 will be able to access a dedicated Commonwealth vaccination clinic to receive the Pfizer vaccine. These clinics are currently being established and will be on the eligibility checker soon.

The first clinic is scheduled to commence on 3 May in Sydney. All disability workers can visit their state or territory government run clinics to access the vaccine recommended for their age. Visit your state or territory health department website for more information.

Data collection on phase 1a residential disability accommodation sites

Disability providers have been asked to provide data to support phase 1a of the rollout. All data collected to date has been validated through Healthdirect who have verified provider’s residential disability accommodation sites and the number of residents and staff. This information has been critical to ensure people in priority groups can be offered the vaccines at the earliest opportunity.

NOTE: the opportunity to provide this data through the DSS portal has now closed. After today, we will not be collecting information on any further residential sites and it will be the responsibility of the disability provider to find alternative vaccination options for its residents.

Webpage updates for people with disability

The department’s webpage Information for people with disability about COVID-19 vaccines has been updated. You will now find the Easy Read and Auslan resources at the top of the page for better visibility and easier access. A new AstraZeneca Easy Read has also been added to the webpage.

For more information, call the National Coronavirus and COVID-19 Vaccination Helpline on 1800 020 080

You can access the Disability Provider alert where there is access to a PDF and accessible doc file.