DISABILITY advocates have called for more access to booster vaccines for people with disabilities, and for no travel to low-vaccination regions to protect those who are at increased risk.
This call comes as COVID-related travel restrictions to regional NSW are set to ease next week.
People With Disability Australia (PWDA) is also calling for other measures to protect people with disability, including expanding the availability of potentially life-saving third jabs as well as risk mitigation advice for people with disabilities living in areas where the virus is being allowed to run free.
“Easing travel restrictions to regions with low vaccination rates – whether in NSW or other areas around Australia – represents a huge health risk for people with disability living in those regions,” PWDA president Samantha Connor said.
“People with disability are at greater risk of sickness and death if they get infected with COVID, so if we let it rip in places like northern NSW where vaccination rates are way below even the 70 per cent threshold, many people with disability living in those places will be sitting ducks as the virus starts circulating in those communities.
“We also have to think about remote First Nations communities, where vaccination rates also remain low.
“Many people in these communities experience a range of health issues which potentially put them at much higher risk.”
People with disabilities have relatively low COVID-19 vaccination rates, and PWDA fears they could be left even further behind, particularly in low-rate regions.
PWDA is calling for people with conditions that affect their immune systems to be given immediate access to a third dose of COVID vaccine to increase their protection from the virus, although the Federal Government is limiting booster shots to an estimated 500,000 Australians who are severely immunocompromised.
“While we welcome this new measure from the Federal Government, it’s not inclusive of the vast majority of people with disability, who require a third jab because research shows that even after two doses of the vaccine many remain clinically vulnerable to the virus,” Ms Connor said.
“People with disability need to be given the best shot for a safe and healthy future and in this case it’s a third shot of the vaccine.”
While there is a push for more to be done before the end of restrictions, PWDA is also looking to the next phase of the COVID response.
It is urging the government to develop an information campaign to educate people with a disability and their carers about getting booster shots, negotiating safe in-home support, rights of access to services and venues, access to relevant data for an individual to undertake their own risk assessment, and alternative ways to demonstrate vaccination status for those who have issues using digital technologies.
