By Gabriella Payne
New data that reveals a breakdown of Covid vaccination rates by local government area was recently released by the federal Department of Health, and it appears that both Casey and Cardinia are lagging behind in comparison to the rest of Victoria.
The data revealed that as of Sunday 5 September, 56.9 per cent of Cardinia’s 86,129 eligible residents (aged 15 and over) had received their first dose, but only 32.3 per cent had been fully vaccinated.
The City of Casey’s figures echoed those from Cardinia, with 54.3 per cent of it’s 273,232 eligible residents having rolled up their sleeves for the first jab, but only 31.7 per cent had received both doses so far – proving there’s still a lot of room for improvement.
The data interestingly showed that while communities like Cardinia and Casey still had a way to go (as did much of greater Melbourne), it’s Victoria’s rural and regional communities that are leading the way when it comes to getting vaxxed.
Granted, many rural communities had smaller populations to vaccinate – but it appears people in these areas are coming out in droves to do their bit in the nationwide vaccination race.
According to the data, the best performing local government area for vaccinations is Queenscliffe, with 91.8 per cent of the community’s 2,610 eligible residents having already received their first dose, and 71.8 per cent being fully vaccinated.
In comparison, the bustling municipality of Melbourne is coming second last in the race, with only 47.3 per cent of the community’s 168,298 eligible residents having received one jab, and 26.7 per cent being fully vaccinated (‘Unincorporated Vic’ is bringing up the rear, with just over 30 per cent of it’s 768 residents having received one dose).
With Covid cases continuing to climb in Melbourne and the vaccination ‘race’ well and truly on, residents in the south eastern suburbs are being encouraged to roll up their sleeves and book in for their jab as soon as possible so that we can all get back to a sense of normality sooner rather than later.
To view weekly vaccination rate updates, head to the federal department of health’s website at www.health.gov.au
For a full rundown on the most recently released data, visit:
https://www.health.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/2021/09/covid-19-vaccination-local-government-area-lga-6-september-2021-covid-19-vaccination-local-government-area-lga.pdf
