Kids on track for first dose vaccine milestone
THE Territory is set to hit a new vaccine milestone on Monday, with 50 per cent of children aged five to 11 having received their first dose.
More than 12,100 vaccines have been administered in just over a month since the paediatric rollout began. Health Minister Natasha Fyles said it was positive to see how quickly the target had been reached for the younger demographic.
“Our youngest Territorians have been setting an excellent example for the rest of the country to follow by rolling up their sleeves to protect themselves and their community,” she said.
It comes three weeks into the school year and almost a month to the day since children became eligible for the vaccine on January 10.
“Eligibility for the paediatric vaccine only opened one month ago – so to achieve a 50 per cent first dose rate so quickly is an outstanding result.”
Those aged five to 11 are advised to wait eight weeks between having their first and second dose, with the Territorywide rollout to begin next month.
According to the NT government website, more than 95 per cent of Territorians aged over 16 have now had two doses of a vaccine.
More than 75,000 booster shots have also been administered, with 39 per cent of the population who are eligible now triple-vaxxed. In kids aged between 12 and 15, 90 per cent have had their first dose and 75 per cent have had two.
In terms of overall population, 79.5 per cent of Territorians have received at least one dose of the vaccine, and 71.8 per cent have had two, according to data on Covid Live.
It comes as a record number of Covid cases were recorded in the NT, with more recorded in one day than in the state of South Australia.