Interview with Chief Medical Officer Professor Paul Kelly on Sky News Live on June 24, 2022

PETER STEFANOVIC:

The government has launched an $11 million campaign to encourage COVID booster updates ahead of an expected increase in cases over the winter. And joining us live now is Chief Medical Officer Professor Paul Kelly. Professor, good to see you. Thanks for your time this morning. So why do you think turnout is so low?

Paul Kelly:

So I think we should look at the positives first, Peter, and that’s that we’ve had tremendous uptake of first and second doses over the last year and a half, and that’s been a fantastic thing. We now know that with Omicron circulating, a third dose is really important. And so I really encouraged anyone today who is eligible for a third dose to not hesitate to go get that dose. There are many places in Australia where these COVID vaccines are still available. And for some people, a fourth dose is now recommended. And while we’ve seen good absorption in older people, I think it’s really time for everyone who is eligible for these doses to roll up their sleeves like we’ve seen before and get these doses. This is a really important message for the Australian people.

PETER STEFANOVIC:

Sure. I guess that was my point too, because I know the first and second doses were way ahead of time. But when it comes to those extra doses, they’re not where they should be, are they? So why would that be? Are there several reasons that come to mind?

Paul Kelly:

So I think, again, to look at the positive, we- people know when they’re more vulnerable, you know. So someone my age, I’m more vulnerable than someone younger to COVID. So I had my third dose. And there are other people older than me or chronically ill who can certainly get a fourth dose as well. And we’re actually getting good uptake in those age groups. But according to a population-wide estimate, about 67% of eligible people received their third dose. We certainly want it to be better than that. People in the older age groups however are very – have had very high absorption, and the fourth dose is being rolled out. But there are a few – there are a few key places that I really want to focus on. The elderly, we know that they are more at risk. They are almost always eligible now for a fourth dose. We really want to encourage people to do that. And we also have the flu going around and the flu in that age group, and children under five. So a very key message from the campaign is also about flu shots, not just COVID. Children under five, pregnant women, are not necessarily more at risk for COVID, but they are certainly at high risk for flu and there is also a lot of flu circulating. It is therefore a key element of the message.

PETER STEFANOVIC:

[Interrupts] With regard to the young people, I suppose more particularly, is there a lot of fatigue that you have noticed? You know, go get another COVID vaccine. Now go get your flu shot. I mean, is there fatigue on that front, maybe more in young people than in old people?

Paul Kelly:

Yeah, I think that’s a fair assumption, certainly from our request to the community. We have been conducting field investigations throughout this COVID pandemic which is still with us and we continue to do this work. People are less concerned about COVID than they were, say, this time last year and that’s partly because of their own lived experience. As we know, most people with COVID will only have very mild or moderate illness. But there are people who may be at higher risk of serious illness and they are the ones who should absolutely get that maximum protection with a third or even fourth dose when they are eligible. I think the other thing that’s happened is a lot of people, of course, this year have had COVID and so there’s this gap that’s put in there in terms of once that you have had COVID and when you are eligible for another dose, there is a gap. So that’s another reason why adoption may have been a little slower than expected.

PETER STEFANOVIC:

Where are the reinfection rates?

Paul Kelly:

So we are seeing a reinfection. We know that Omicron itself, having received a previous dose of one of the other types of – one of the other variants of COVID-19, Omicron evaded that immune protection from both a previous dose and of only two doses of vaccine, we know this. We are now seeing sub-variants of Omicron – the latter known as BA-4 and BA-5, which has now become the dominant strain in the UK for example, and it is growing particularly on the east coast of Australia. We know this is more transmissible and tends to evade the immune system so we will – unfortunately we will see reinfections over the coming weeks and months with this one. But what we don’t see is a big increase in serious illnesses and that’s due to the vaccine protection that can be boosted again, as we said, with a third and fourth dose, the care of the seniors and those who are eligible, Absolutely. And the other issue that we should be talking about, Peter, is also about treatments and the availability of antivirals for COVID.

PETER STEFANOVIC:

Can I end here on one, I guess, a personal question from a teacher from personal experience, and it concerns my children. They keep getting sick at daycare, don’t they, and there are so many other kids who keep getting sick with so many other different illnesses. I know that foot-and-mouth disease is invading child care centers right now. There are so many other diseases. Just- I’m curious, how many different viruses and how many different bugs are going around right now at any given time?

Paul Kelly:

So first of all, Peter, foot-and-mouth disease. Foot-and-mouth disease is a terrible livestock disease that we, you know, don’t have here in Australia, thank God. But foot, hand, and mouth disease is common, exactly, in daycares. And I think wherever young children congregate in numbers, these diseases, so any parent who knows – any parent, I would say, who has had children in daycare knows this. And that’s a challenge. We’ve done a lot of work with child care and, you know, I think there’s – if we look at the positive of the COVID experience, people are much more attentive to hand hygiene and, you know , cough hygiene and all these messages that we have been transmitting for so many years. But small children, it’s quite tricky.

PETER STEFANOVIC:

Yeah.

Paul Kelly:

So we’re going to continue to see these things. But again, a very strong message for you and for other parents with children this age: get your flu shot. It will certainly protect them against this. It won’t protect them against some of the other respiratory illnesses, but definitely that one. Very encouraged.

PETER STEFANOVIC:

[Interrupts] But just quickly, I mean, are there dozens – are there dozens of different bugs floating around at any given time?

Paul Kelly:

Yeah, there are a lot. We know, but we only know what we are looking for, of course. So we know COVID, we know flu, we know several other viruses. And it is possible to get tests for all of these viruses. And indeed, in labs, that’s what we’re doing now, looking at not just COVID, but all other respiratory viruses. It’s the time of year, no. They run in winter.

PETER STEFANOVIC:

Yeah. Yeah. Without a doubt. Professor Paul Kelly, thank you. We’ll talk to you soon.

Paul Kelly:

You’re welcome.

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