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Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt says he is “optimistic” that a coronavirus vaccine will be available next year.
Mr Hunt says the government is close to striking a deal which would permit the production of a vaccine in Australia, but was unable to provide the names of the companies involved due to contractual reasons.
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“We are in advanced negotiations with a range of different companies with regards to a vaccine,” Mr Hunt told Sky News on Sunday.
“I am now on the basis of our best advice genuinely more optimistic, I think the work is moving closer to a vaccine.’
He said very significant progress is being made around the world to produce a vaccine.
“All our advice has been 2021 is the most likely anything that occur,” he said.
“Before then, then that would be an outstanding result, not just for Australia but for the world.”
His comments follow reports that Australia is in the final stages of negotiations to sign a deal with Oxford University to produce its “promising” vaccine.
An ongoing trial involving 1,077 healthy adults found that the British drug appears to be safe and to produce immunity, researchers say.
Describing Hunt’s comments as as an “exciting development,” infectious diseases expert Dr. Catherine Bennett told Sunrise the government will be keen to seal a vaccine deal.
“It’s all looking good at the moment, but it’s a challenge because we have to be sure that the vaccine is going to be approved as safe,” she said.
Dr Bennett says a large number of Australians would need to be injected with the vaccine to stamp out COVID-19 in the community and allow all restrictions to be lifted.
“Ideally in Australia if you really wanted to hit this on the head, then you’d want to have 100 per cent vaccination and that would protect the entire community,” she explained.
“But anything close to that will break the transmission chains so the virus won’t be able to spread in the community.”
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