Key Points:
- COVID-19 vaccine ready to be produced in Australia
- Oxford University developed vaccine the frontrunner and most promising yet
- Government will make the vaccine available free of charge to all Australians
Currently Oxford University is leading the pack in the race to develop a successful vaccine against COVID-19. ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 is currently in phase three testing across the globe and is set to become the first available vaccine to prevent COVID-19.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison told Melbourne’s 3AW radio station that a successful vaccine will be “as mandatory as you can possibly make it”, offering 25 million units for everyone in Australia.
With the Oxford vaccine showing promise through it’s testing around the globe, the government has already secured a patent to produce the vaccine locally once it has passed all of its testing and regulations. The government also will be making the vaccine free for all Australians to ensure everyone has access to it.
“We are taking advice from Australia’s best medical and scientific expertise to ensure that the Government’s work to select, produce and purchase COVID-19 vaccines and treatments is based on the best available knowledge.” says Mr Morrison.
The University of Queensland is also working on its own “molecular clamp” vaccine, which has started trials here in Australia. To support this locally developing vaccine, the Australian Government has contributed $5 million to the project.
Australian company CSL is hoping to produce 100 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine in conjunction with the University of Queensland by Q4 2021.