National Cabinet has today agreed to vaccinate athletes and support staff headed to the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games under priority group 1b.
Minister for Health and Aged Care, Greg Hunt and Minister for Senior Australians and Aged Care Services and Minister for Sport, Richard Colbeck said it offers an assurance to athletes preparing to represent Australia on the world stage.
Supplies of the COVID-19 vaccine will be made available to approximately 2050 Australians identified by the AOC and Paralympics Australia.
“We want to see our athletes head to Tokyo to compete and then return to Australia safely,” Minister Hunt said.
The vaccinations will comprise both Pfizer and AstraZeneca (for team members aged over 50 years).
Minister Colbeck said it marked an important step as Olympians readied for their campaigns.
“While vulnerable Australians remain an absolute priority as the vaccine rollout continues, National Cabinet understands the pressure our high-performance athletes have been facing as the Tokyo Games draw closer,” Minister Colbeck said.
“This will be a very different Olympics and Paralympics, but our athletes deserve the opportunity to compete.”
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