Booster shots and childhood vaccinations mean we rely on two pharmaceutical companies to supply Australia's COVID vaccine. This needs to change.
#Australiarisks #relyingPfizer #ModernaCOVID #vaccines
The rapid development and deployment of COVID vaccines has been one of the greatest achievements of the pandemic.
However, Australia risks relying on COVID vaccines from two main companies – Pfizer and Moderna – and that’s a problem.
While the need for COVID vaccines is not going away anytime soon, we need to shape the market to drive more competition for better access to improved vaccines.
Here’s what Australia needs to do to break free from an effective duopoly dominating the local market, especially when many of us are likely to need boosters.
COVID vaccination recommendations evolve over time. Who is due for which dose now?
How did we get here?
When COVID finally broke out at scale in Australia late last year, the vaccines worked extremely well to reduce s and severe illness.
Since January 1 this year, there have been more than 5.9 million confirmed COVID infections nationwide, but about 5,300 s.
Yet current vaccines aren’t 100% effective at protecting against infection; new viral variants continue to emerge; protection via vaccination and prior infection wanes quite quickly, meaning reinfection is becoming more common and booster shots may remain part of the landscape for some time to come.
Meanwhile, vaccine inequity remains an unresolved problem. This has led to a situation where rich countries, such as Australia, are giving booster shots where some poorer countries don’t even have enough vaccine for first doses.
How Australia's fickleness on COVID vaccines is perpetuating global vaccine inequity
Pfizer and Moderna, but not much else
In a recent article in the Medical Journal of Australia, we outline the need to break free from the handful of powerful players still dominating Australia’s COVID vaccine market.
While the number of approved COVID vaccines is growing around the world, Australia largely still relies on only two, namely vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna.
The AstraZeneca and Novavax vaccines are only rarely used as boosters if no other vaccines are suitable.
More than 95% of Australian adults have received two doses of COVID vaccine already. So future requirements are primarily for boosters and child vaccines. Australia, therefore, continues to face an effective duopoly.
The power of patents
This effective duopoly further reinforces the already considerable power these manufacturers hold via the intellectual property rights to their vaccines.
These vaccine patents are protected by the World Trade Organization under the A
,1,As northern and eastern Australia brace for ample rain, the Bureau of Meteorology's seasonal outlook shows a dry winter for Western Australia's most populous region - here's why.
#WAs #southwestset #drywinter #climatechange
As northern and eastern Australia brace for a wet and wet winter, the Bureau of Meteorology's seasonal outlook shows Western Australia's most densely populated areas are very different from the rest of the country.
Takeaway: Drier winters expected for WA's South West Land Department
A dry winter is forecast for the WA South West Land Department. Rising sea temperatures are partly to blame
Rising sea temperatures are one reason climate change models suggest drought will persist
Instead of being wrapped in blues and greens, the precipitation forecast map is marked with shades of orange and red - an indication of what could be a dry winter.
The Bureau of Meteorology's director of long-term forecasts, Andrew Watkins, said much of the south-west, including Perth, was likely to experience below-average rainfall this winter.
"The odds are about 70 per cent and it's drier than average, so it's the opposite of anywhere else in Australia," he said.
For Perth, that means less than 395mm of rain.
The Bureau of Meteorology is forecasting a wet and wet winter for much of the country, but particularly in Western Australia's most populous areas.
Above-average heat is forecast for Perth and the state's south-west.
Meanwhile, the northern parts of the state, including the Pilbara and Kimberley, are forecast to experience above-average wet temperatures over the next three months.
So why is there a difference?
Warm oceans come into play
The BOM outlook takes into account the effects of climate change and natural climate drivers.
Dr Watkins said it was a "probabilistic forecast" that essentially looked at how the dice would load up for the upcoming season.
Western Australia's Pilbara and Kimberley regions could experience a wetter winter.
One of the main reasons for the above-average rainfall in the north and east of the country this winter is warmer sea temperatures, he said.
These include a climate driver known as the Indian Ocean Dipole, which is expected to enter a "negative" phase in the coming months.
Negative IOP occurs when sea surface temperatures in the Indian Ocean off the east coast of Africa are cooler than usual, while waters in northwestern Australia are warmer.
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Every event is different, but a negative IOD typically brings wet weather from Gascoyne in Western Australia to Tasmania.
"So negative IOP encourages those northwest cloud bands, especially at this time of year when you get into winter," he said.
"They saw huge clouds c
,1,The world knows pretty much every detail of the personal lives of Johnny Depp and Amber Heard as the good, the bad and the ugly are stripped out of court testimony.
#WhoJohnny #DeppAmber #Heard #children
The feud between Johnny Depp's daughter and ex-wife Amber Heard was exposed in an ugly two-star lawsuit.
The world knows pretty much every detail of the personal lives of Johnny Depp and Amber Heard as the good, the bad and the ugly are stripped out of court testimony.
While most of the public scrutiny has undoubtedly affected Depp and Heard, the messy divorce and court process has also affected their loved ones.
The sensational court battle between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard ended with a jury verdict in favor of the "Pirates of the Caribbean" star who found she "acted with genuine malice".
Stream more entertainment news live and on demand with Flash. Over 25 news channels in one place. New to Flash? 1 month free trial. Offer ends October 31, 2022
Johnny Depp has filed a $50 million defamation lawsuit against his ex-wife. Image: Evelyn Hoxstein/Pool/AFP)
Amber Heard is suing for $100 million
Since their divorce in 2016, it seems everyone connected to the actor feels compelled to make a public statement — or testify in court, as Depp's former supermodel girlfriend Kate Moss did.
The overwhelming public attention has also fallen on the couple's children, who have come under scrutiny in an ugly smear battle.
Who are Johnny Depp's children?
Depp has a 14-year relationship with French model, actress and singer Vanessa Paradis, with whom they have two children. The couple welcomed their first daughter Lily-Rose in 1999 and son Jack two years later.
Depp and Vanessa Paradis ended their 14-year relationship in 2012. Image credit: AP Photo/Chris Pizzello
Lily-Rose followed in her parents' footsteps and became a well-respected model and actress.
She appeared opposite her famous father in Tusk in 2014, and reprised her role in the 2016 spin-off Yoga Hosers. Her character will get her third run in Moose Jaws.
Lily-Rose appears in Yoga Hosers with her father and Harley Quinn Smith. Image: Included
The 22-year-old actress has been critically acclaimed for her stellar performances in several French films, including her role as Isadora Duncan in The Dancer, which earned her a 2017 Most Promising Actress at the annual Caesars and Limineres Awards.
Lily-Rose also starred in Natalie Portmans y
,1,Booster shots and childhood vaccinations mean we rely on two pharmaceutical companies to supply Australia's COVID vaccine. This needs to change.
#Australiarisks #relyingPfizer #ModernaCOVID #vaccines
The rapid development and deployment of COVID vaccines has been one of the greatest achievements of the pandemic.
However, Australia risks relying on COVID vaccines from two main companies – Pfizer and Moderna – and that’s a problem.
While the need for COVID vaccines is not going away anytime soon, we need to shape the market to drive more competition for better access to improved vaccines.
Here’s what Australia needs to do to break free from an effective duopoly dominating the local market, especially when many of us are likely to need boosters.
COVID vaccination recommendations evolve over time. Who is due for which dose now?
How did we get here?
When COVID finally broke out at scale in Australia late last year, the vaccines worked extremely well to reduce s and severe illness.
Since January 1 this year, there have been more than 5.9 million confirmed COVID infections nationwide, but about 5,300 s.
Yet current vaccines aren’t 100% effective at protecting against infection; new viral variants continue to emerge; protection via vaccination and prior infection wanes quite quickly, meaning reinfection is becoming more common and booster shots may remain part of the landscape for some time to come.
Meanwhile, vaccine inequity remains an unresolved problem. This has led to a situation where rich countries, such as Australia, are giving booster shots where some poorer countries don’t even have enough vaccine for first doses.
How Australia's fickleness on COVID vaccines is perpetuating global vaccine inequity
Pfizer and Moderna, but not much else
In a recent article in the Medical Journal of Australia, we outline the need to break free from the handful of powerful players still dominating Australia’s COVID vaccine market.
While the number of approved COVID vaccines is growing around the world, Australia largely still relies on only two, namely vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna.
The AstraZeneca and Novavax vaccines are only rarely used as boosters if no other vaccines are suitable.
More than 95% of Australian adults have received two doses of COVID vaccine already. So future requirements are primarily for boosters and child vaccines. Australia, therefore, continues to face an effective duopoly.
The power of patents
This effective duopoly further reinforces the already considerable power these manufacturers hold via the intellectual property rights to their vaccines.
These vaccine patents are protected by the World Trade Organization under the A
