Page 2741 - Week 10 - Wednesday, 6 October 2021
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where an exemption was not required under the public health direction, and the approximately 1,392 remaining applications were awaiting further information or requiring processing. Our exemptions team continues to work hard to process a large volume of applications. These are considered on a case-by-case basis with careful assessment of the level of risk and individual circumstances.
We are continuing to closely observe the situation in New South Wales with a particular focus on the region surrounding the ACT with a view to ensuring that travel restrictions remain appropriate and proportionate. We expect the risk of incursion to remain high due to the wide spread of cases across the state.
Victoria’s COVID-19 situation has evolved quickly, with daily case numbers having doubled in a little over a week. On 5 October, Victoria reached the highest daily local case numbers of any state or territory, 1,763, bringing total reported active cases to 12,711.
The ACT has declared all of Victoria a COVID-19 affected area, requiring all travellers to seek an exemption before entering the ACT, including ACT residents. As of 5 October 2021, ACT Health had received 1,526 exemption applications to enter the ACT from Victoria. 822 applications had been approved, 348 applications had been declined, 155 applications were awaiting processing or required further information, and 201 had been withdrawn or were applications where an exemption was not required under the public health direction.
I am proud to say that the ACT’s COVID-19 vaccination program is leading the nation. The ACT continues to achieve strong vaccination coverage. To ensure that we continue our strong performance, protect our community and reach our goal of around 95 per cent coverage, the 2021-22 budget includes approximately $22.5 million in additional funding. Our priority is to ensure that the rollout progresses in an efficient, accessible and, above all, safe manner.
As of 4 October, 94 per cent of all Canberrans aged 12 years and older had received their first COVID-19 vaccination dose, and more than 65 per cent were fully vaccinated. The ACT is on track to reach our vaccination milestones of 70 and 80 per cent fully vaccinated later this month, and we are aiming to reach 95 per cent full vaccination of the eligible population later this year. This will be a remarkable achievement and is all thanks to the outstanding work of the community in coming forward to book their vaccination appointment as soon as they become eligible.
The ACT was the first jurisdiction to reach 90 per cent first dose coverage, and we are on track to reach 90 per cent second dose vaccination by the end of October 2021. However, we are not there yet. These next few weeks are going to be critical in ensuring that we manage the current outbreak in a sustainable way until we reach this target. There are still some members of the community who are eligible and have not yet made an appointment to be vaccinated.
Last week, the mRNA vaccines Pfizer and Moderna became available to everyone in the ACT aged 12 years and older. I urge anyone who is still waiting to book their first vaccination dose to make it a priority to book an appointment. We have sufficient
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