VICTORIAN Education Minister James Merlino is pushing for all senior students to be vaccinated before exams start on October 4, and Swan Hill college principal Andrew Sartori supports students booking in to get immunised.
“Certainly I’d encourage students to get vaccinated, but I wouldn’t force anyone – it’s still an individual choice,” Mr Sartori said.
The State Government campaign to get more senior students vaccinated came after the Pfizer vaccine was made available for those aged over 16 on August 30.
“I would hope that no student gets COVID and wouldn’t be able to do their exams, so I would recommend students to get vaccinated as quickly as they could, if they haven’t been vaccinated already,” Mr Sartori said.
As of Monday, students aged 12-15 were also eligible for Pfizer.
The Moderna vaccine, approved for people aged 12-17, was expected to roll out across the country within two weeks.
Premier Daniel Andrews is strongly urging more young people to get vaccinated as daily numbers of new cases in Victoria rose above 400.
