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The COVID-19 vaccine should urgently be made mandatory for disability workers working face-to-face with clients, as concerns emerged some workers in the sector would refuse the jab, a peak body says.
National Disability Services CEO David Moody said the government should make the vaccine compulsory for the thousands of support workers involved in face-to-face contact with people with disability, given their health and vulnerability.
The call comes amid major concerns a significant cohort of workers in the disability field indicated they would refuse the vaccine.
“We’re getting enough feedback from our members to suggest that there’s a significant cohort of workers in the sector who would refuse to have the vaccine, even when they’re able to get access to it and that’s a significant concern to us in terms of making the sector as safe as possible, as quickly as possible,” Mr Moody said.
The National Disability Services is the peak body providing non-government services to the disability sector and has 1100 organisational members.
One member in South Australia surveyed 200 of its staff less than two months ago and found almost half — 48 per cent — indicated they would refuse the vaccine once it became available.
Mr Moody said the finding was of “significant concern” and limited the capacity of people with disability to choose a worker who had been immunised.
“Vaccinations such as the flu vaccine have been mandatory in the aged care and health sectors and are mandatory for some time now and the flu vaccination is mandated in certain disability services around Australia at a local level,” he said.
“We are struggling to understand why it wouldn’t be appropriate to mandate the vaccinations through public health orders for workers in the sector working face-to-face with disability?
“We’re talking about thousands of workers providing face-to-face support for people with disability and we’re saying the vaccine should be mandated for those workers, with appropriate exemptions, through the vehicle of public health orders.”
Mr Moody said members of the workforce were already taking preventive measures such as social distancing and mask wearing, but mandating vaccinations was the best way to keep people safe.
Vaccinations in Australia are voluntary, including the COVID-19 vaccine.
The health department advises that people may ask their disability service provider to encourage their support worker to get vaccinated.
If the worker does not want to be vaccinated, the client can contact their service provider to make other arrangements and possibly find another worker.
The Department of Health said it had been meeting with representatives from the disability sector to understand issues on the rollout specific to their needs.
Health Minister Greg Hunt has encouraged everyone to get vaccinated.
“Our medical advice in Australia is absolutely clear, that having a vaccination is critical to the safety of Australians,” he told 2GB radio on Monday.
“We’re fortunate and another day of zero cases. I think today that makes 62 for the year. And around the world there are 697,000 cases, and over 10,900 lives lost. Australia, zero, the world, 697,000 cases.
“But what that says about the world is we remain at risk. That’s why we have to be vaccinated as a country.”
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