Australia urges over-50s to get jabbed as vaccine hesitancy grows

People stand on the harbour waterfront near the Sydney Opera House in Sydney, Australia

Australia on Friday pressed over-50s to get their coronavirus shots, as fears mounted that vaccine hesitancy could be priming the country for disaster. Australia is one of the few countries in the world to eliminate community transmission of Covid-19, but vaccine rollout has been slow. After chronic delivery delays, there is growing evidence that older Australians are more concerned about the AstraZeneca vaccine's side effects than catching the virus. ‘I encourage those over 50 to get the jab,’ Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Friday, ‘and if you are over 70, I would very much encourage you to.’