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Moderna COVID-19 vaccine available in nearly 500 WA pharmacies for people as young as 12

Charlotte EltonThe West Australian
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Health Minister Roger Cook says there is now "no excuse" for people not to get vaccinated with the rollout of the Moderna vaccine to WA pharmacies.
Camera IconHealth Minister Roger Cook says there is now "no excuse" for people not to get vaccinated with the rollout of the Moderna vaccine to WA pharmacies. Credit: The West Australian

The Moderna vaccine will be made available at nearly 500 WA pharmacists, with walk-ins welcome from over-12s.

Across the state, 471 pharmacies will be able to administer the Moderna vaccine — an mRNA vaccine like Pfizer — to anyone aged 12 and above.

Around 100 pharmacies have started receiving the vaccine today, with the rest coming onboard by early October.

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Walk-ins will be welcomed, with 100,000 doses available for the push.

“Moderna is a great vaccine, it can be kept at higher temperatures than Pfizer and is administered four weeks apart,” Health Minister Roger Cook said.

“(This) will be a really important opportunity for people to get themselves vaccinated. It provides an extra level of convenience, so there’s no excuse, everyone really does have the opportunity to get the jab.”

Mr Cook claimed that the new initiative would make it easier for regional West Australians to get the jab.

“There may be some small country towns that don't have a GP. Almost every town has a pharmacist,” he said.

The pharmacy roll-out will be overseen by the Commonwealth Government and the Pharmacy Guild of Australia WA Branch.

WA Branch president Andrew Ngeow welcomed the decision ahead of the upcoming school holidays.

“This is a great day for Western Australians,” he said.

“With school holidays on the way, we encourage all Western Australians to bring their kids, bring their parents, bring themselves into a pharmacy and get vaccinated.

“It’s our only way out of this pandemic.”

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