Victorian Govt backs down on is attempts to force everyone to vaccinate to visit their elderly in aged care homes after concerted campaign.
By Staff Reporter
‘Hello everyone, we are proud to announce that the Victorian Government has removed the influenza vaccine mandate in the aged care sector.
We should all be proud of our collective efforts in that regard.
My team and I have put a video together in relation to this issue. Please click the attached link.
We will be writing to all other States and Territories to follow suit.
The Aged Care Quality Improvement Unit from Department of Health and Human Services Victoria writes:
‘Influenza vaccinations in RACF
With the issue of Care Facilities Direction (No from 11:59 pm on 22 July 2020, Victoria’s Chief Health Officer removed the restriction on persons entering, or remaining on, the premises of a care facility where the person could not demonstrate that they have an up to date vaccination against influenza, if such vaccination is available to the person.
Accordingly, employees who had not been vaccinated against influenza and who were required to work in other areas, or take leave, may now return to duty in care facilities.
However, residential aged care facilities are encouraged to continue to recommend that staff and visitors have a flu vax given the vulnerability of residents in the event of infection.
While a requirement to have an up-to-date vaccination is no longer a requirement of the Victorian Direction, staff and volunteers of aged care facilities are still required to be offered the vaccination program in accordance with Commonwealth requirements.’
Indeed the Biosecurity Act is clear when Government can make a vaccination a requirement under sections 60 and 61 as well as the Public Health and Mental Wellbeing Act under section 117. You need to have an infectious disease risk identified and personal orders issued to you with appropriate review rights articulated clearly.
No one can require you to take a vaccine under the law especially when you are healthy and there are no infectious disease risks identified through signs and symptoms and you have not been issued the appropriate orders from authorized personnel.
This mania must stop. Enforcing requirements on individuals who are healthy or who are not at risk and when the risk is not of a deadly nature is reprehensible and clearly feeds into alternative agendas of control rather than mitigation of health risks in a rational and sensible manner.
People are getting angry at me for defending their rights. Please grow up and open your eyes and analyse the reality that is being changed around us. Clearly, someone in Government has understood that nuance and appreciated that vaccination must only be recommended as a policy and never required beyond what the legislation sets out.
This does not undermine an appropriate assessment of the risks. However, some people in Government have also acted in such a way as to not allow the public to know, in a transparent manner, what has precipitated in the aged care sector and what may or may not have contributed to the increased deaths in that sphere. COVERT COVID operations of Government takeovers, with the use of military, are simply not welcomed and they don’t allow the public to truly understand what is going on. Independent scientists, medical practitioners, and experts should be allowed to participate in such processes even as observers.
Let us unite together and stand strong. We will be launching our class action soon. Together we can bring back common sense and take the appropriate steps to mitigate risks without making this fight against COVID-19 a battleground for citizen takeover.’
These are the new directions:
https://www.dhhs.vic.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/202007/Care%20Facilities%20Directions%20%28No%208%29%20-%2022%20July%202020.pdf
