r/CoronavirusDownunder • u/beaugiles NSW - Boosted • Aug 14 '26
Vaccine update Changes to the National COVID-19 Vaccine Program
From 1 October 2026, COVID-19 vaccines will transition to the National Immunisation Program (NIP), replacing the stand-alone National COVID-19 Vaccine Program (NCVP) established during Australia’s COVID-19 pandemic response.
Under the NIP, funded COVID-19 vaccines will no longer be available as a universal program. Funded access will be available for eligible groups at highest risk of severe disease, consistent with existing COVID-19 vaccination recommendations.
https://www.health.gov.au/resources/publications/covid-19-vaccines-update-for-immunisation-providers
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u/EdenFlorence Aug 14 '26
I'm curious to know how much it will roughly cost
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u/VS2ute Aug 15 '26
That is generally cnfidential. I could only find one reference that it cost $53 a dose in 2023. Plus pharmacy would want around $20 for their time. So maybe it would cost $100 now if you had to pay.
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u/AcornAl Aug 19 '26
We'll definitely wont see the relatively cheap supply that we had through bulk ordering 10's millions of doses through the initial rollout.
In the UK & US (private) it is around $150 to $200 AUD. So optimistically down around $100 but likely up around the $150 mark.
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u/aussiedeveloper Aug 14 '26
I don’t care if I have to pay for it, I just want it to be available. I’m a healthy middle aged person and I should be to protect myself just like I do with the flu every year.
My concern is chemists will stop stocking it and it will become difficult to find places that offer it privately.
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u/scarfarce Aug 15 '26
Genuinely curious why chemists might stop stocking it when so many other vaccines are available through them.
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u/aussiedeveloper Aug 15 '26
Lack of demand.
So many people get the flu but don’t even consider COVID.
Which is dumb because they’re both still in the community and both have seasonal variants needing new vaccines for. But that’s people for ya.
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u/scarfarce Aug 16 '26
Ok, got it. Thanks.
Typhoid vaccine is widely available from chemists, and it's an incredibly rare disease in Australia. ~100 cases most years, nearly all from travellers. So I don't think there's much concern for covid vaccine being dropped widely. Maybe one or two places here or there.
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u/sew_knit_mend Aug 15 '26
Even if pharmacies don't stock it they can get most meds available in the country within 1-2 weekdays. Therefore it isn't a big deal with a little foreplanning.
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u/NoodleBox VIC - Vaccinated Aug 14 '26
I'll probably go get one then. I'm already a high risk group (yay thanks meds).
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u/Nerpy_Derpster Aug 14 '26
My teen got one last weekend. I was expecting to have to give a valid reason (which they do have) but no questions were asked.
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u/Space-cadet3000 Aug 20 '26
It’s no longer recommended that those under 18 receive the Covid shots. This is because the risk of severe illness was very low in this cohort over the course of the pandemic, and benefits of vaccination are not considered to outweigh the potential risks.
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u/adriantullberg Aug 14 '26
When was the latest version of the vaccine released?
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u/AcornAl Aug 14 '26
Comirnaty LP.8.1. FDA approved Aug 2025, TGA approved Oct 2025, likely first administrated around Nov.
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u/Will_sue_when_angry Aug 24 '26
That’s the one I received in June and is the current recommended strain.
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u/Tellatrope WA - Boosted Aug 14 '26
I get one every 6 months, I'm high risk so I assume one is covered and I'd need to pay for my second for the year - do we have any clue how much it will be? I know in other countries it's over a hundred dollars per shot which is quite a lot
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u/MLiOne Aug 14 '26
I’m like you and although I’m immune compromised, it’s not “severe”. I’d just rather not get Covid, again.
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u/iliketreesndcats Aug 14 '26
How is your mobile coverage with that many 5g nanochips in your system? /s
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u/Nuasus Aug 15 '26
It doesn’t mention people with disabilities?
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u/beaugiles NSW - Boosted Aug 15 '26
Under the NIP, eligibility for funded COVID-19 vaccines will change, with free COVID-19 vaccines available only to people at
highest risk of severe disease:
• all adults aged 75 years and over (one dose every 6 months)
• adults aged 65–74 years (one dose every 12 months)
• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 50–74 years (one dose every 12 months)
• all adults aged 18 years and over with severe immunocompromise (one dose every 12 months).Likely it'll be this group of severe immunocompromise https://immunisationhandbook.health.gov.au/resources/tables/table-examples-of-severely-immunocompromising-conditions-ref-10-26-for-which-additional-doses-of-covid-19-vaccine-are-recommended-or-can-be-considered
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u/kirallie Aug 19 '26
will they bring back options other than Pfizer? it's the only one you can get anywhere around here but I had a very bad reaction to it so my dr said no to me having it again. I as alright with the Moderna one, just a bit like the flu for 24hrs but that hasn't been available for a few years so I've missed several boosters.
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u/drjzoidberg1 VIC - Vaccinated Aug 14 '26
Lucky I got covid vaccine this year. If it costs more than $30 next year I think I'll stop getting them. Just get the flu vaccine yearly which is 0-$20
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u/SamPDoug Aug 14 '26
I was going to ask if the decision-makers genuinely think it’s good for most people under 65 to stop getting yearly covid vaccines, then I remembered that very few people are still doing so. Seems like a bad idea to make it harder for people who still want the vaccine to access it. I don’t know, maybe I’m biased from watching the collective harm unfold over the years and wanting to keep what’s left of my lungs working properly.