COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Two more deaths from AstraZeneca side effects

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Original article by Matthew Denholm
The Australian – Page: 4 : 23-Jul-21

The Therapeutic Good Administration has advised that 87 cases of thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome have been recorded nationwide since the COVID-19 vaccination rollout began. Five Australians have now died from the rare blood clotting disorder that has been linked to the AstraZeneca vaccine, with a 48-year-old Victorian woman and a 44-year-old Tasmanian man passing away in the last week. The death of a sixth person who had received their first dose of the AstraZeneca jab has been attributed to an even rarer condition known as immune thrombocytopenia, which involves a low platelet count.

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AUSTRALIA. THERAPEUTIC GOODS ADMINISTRATION

Thousands of COVID-19 close contacts in Victoria not yet tested

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Original article by Paul Sakkal, Cassandra Morgan
The Age – Page: Online : 23-Jul-21

Victoria has recorded 26 new locally-acquired COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, although only two of them were active in the community while they were infectious. Some 16 of the new cases have been partially vaccinated, while five are fully vaccinated. Meanwhile, more than 19,000 Victorians are self-isolating because they are close contacts of infected people or they have visited exposure sites. Professor Catherine Bennett of Deakin University has questioned why there is no legal requirement for them to be tested soon after going into isolation; at present they are only required to test negative on the 13th day of their two-week quarantine period.

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DEAKIN UNIVERSITY

AstraZeneca blitz: PM says get the jab now

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Original article by Olivia Caisley
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 23-Jul-21

Prime Scott Morrison says he is sorry that the federal government’s COVID-19 vaccination rollout has missed a series of targets. However, he says it is "totally focused" on turning this around. Morrison has also revealed plans to ramp up the number of pharmacies that are able to provide COVID-19 vaccinations, while he has urged younger Australians to get the AstraZeneca vaccine. Morrison contends that the emergence of the Delta variant in Australia means that the AstraZeneca vaccine should no longer be restricted to people over the age of 60, and notes that the Therapeutic Goods Administration has approved its use among people aged 18+. Meanwhile, the TGA is set to approve Pfizer’s application for its vaccine to be given to children aged 12-16.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, ASTRAZENECA PLC, AUSTRALIA. THERAPEUTIC GOODS ADMINISTRATION

Phantom pain as Opera Australia counts the cost

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Original article by Matthew Westwood
The Australian – Page: 3 : 23-Jul-21

Opera Australia has postponed a new production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s ‘The Phantom of the Opera’ due to COVID-19 lockdowns. About $20m worth of tickets for an upcoming run in Sydney and Melbourne have been sold, and the musical would have helped offset the $7.1m deficit that Opera Australia recorded in 2020. Meanwhile, Live Performance Australia will lobby the federal government for additional industry assistance, with CEO Evelyn Richardson warning that the sector is likely to face ongoing disruptions for at least another 6-9 months.

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OPERA AUSTRALIA, LIVE PERFORMANCE AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Consider getting AstraZeneca if you are under 40: Berejiklian

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Original article by Alexandra Smith, Lucy Carroll, Liam Mannix
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 23-Jul-21

New South Wales has recorded 124 new locally-acquired COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, including 48 people who were active in the community while they were infectious. There are 118 people across NSW in hospital with the coronavirus, including 15 who are under the age of 35. Premier Gladys Berejiklian says people under the age of 40 should get the AstraZeneca vaccine if their GP advises them to do so, rather than wait for the Pfizer jab. Meanwhile, Australian Medical Association president Omar Khorshid says lockdowns may not be enough to contain the Delta variant, so the AstraZeneca vaccine may be a good option for people under the age of 60.

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NEW SOUTH WALES. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION LIMITED

Three NSW regional councils go into lockdown

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Original article by Anna Caldwell
The Daily Telegraph – Page: 7 : 21-Jul-21

New South Wales has recorded 78 new locally-acquired COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, including 29 people who were active in the community while they were infectious. Meanwhile, three local government areas in regional NSW will be subject to stage one lockdown restrictions for at least seven days in order to contain the spread of the Delta variant. A pet food delivery driver from south-west Sydney is believed to have been highly infectious when he recently visited a number of exposure sites in the shires of Orange, Blayney and Cabonne. Residents will only be permitted to leave their home for four essential reasons, although schools will remain open.

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South Australia enters snap seven-day lockdown

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Original article by Andrew Hough, Kara Jung, Katelin Nelligan, Gabriel Polychronis, Antimo Iannella
The Advertiser – Page: Online : 21-Jul-21

Premier Steven Marshall says South Australia is facing a "real and present threat" from the Delta variant of COVID-19. His government has imposed South Australia’s third lockdown since the pandemic began, after the cluster in the Adelaide suburb of Modbury rose to five people. Health authorities have identified more than 50 exposure sites that are linked to the oubreak. Residents of Adelaide, Gawler and the Adelaide Hills will be entitled to federal income support of up to $600 a week after Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly designated them as ‘hotspots’. The federal government is under growing pressure to reinstate the JobKeeper scheme, with more than 13 million Australians now subject to lockdowns.

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SOUTH AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PREMIER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HEALTH

Andrews extends lockdown, tightens Sydney border rules

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Original article by Michael Fowler, Aisha Dow, Melissa Cunningham
The Age – Page: Online : 21-Jul-21

Victoria has recorded 13 new locally-acquired COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, including one mystery case. Four of the new cases were active in the community while they were infectious. The state government has responded by extending the state-wide lockdown by another seven days; it is now slated to end at 11.59pm on 27 July, although health experts caution that this will depend on the case load at the time. The government has also closed its borders to all travellers from New South Wales and the ACT for two weeks, including Victorian residents who are not deemed to be authorised workers or qualify for an exemption on compassionate grounds.

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Mortgage stress near record low in mid-2021

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 21-Jul-21

New research from Roy Morgan shows that an estimated 677,000 mortgage holders (17.3%) were at risk of ‘mortgage stress’ in the three months to May 2021. This period encompassed the end of the JobKeeper wage subsidy in late March, low community transmission of COVID-19 and only a few ‘short and sharp’ lockdowns and border closures to deal with outbreaks. This level of mortgage stress is down sharply on a year ago when an estimated 794,000 mortgage holders (19.4%) were at risk during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in the three months to May 2020. Of those mortgage holders considered ‘At Risk’ in the three months to May 2021, some 440,000 (11.8% of all mortgage holders), were considered ‘Extremely at Risk’, down from 480,000 (12.3%) on the three months to May 2020. These are the latest findings from Roy Morgan’s Single Source Survey, based on in-depth interviews conducted with over 50,000 Australians each year including over 10,000 owner-occupied mortgage-holders.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

SMEs squirrel away cash in crisis: ANZ

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Original article by Jared Lynch
The Australian – Page: 13 & 16 : 19-Jul-21

ANZ Bank’s CEO Shayne Elliott says the amount of cash held in bank deposits has surged during the last year, with small businesses and consumers opting to save during the COVID-19 pandemic. He notes that small businesses in particular are opting to save at an "unprecedented rate", adding that this trend could have a slight negative impact on the national economy. However, Elliott says increased savings means that small businesses are in a much stronger position during the current lockdowns compared with 2020.

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AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ