Tom Sawyer

Smokers - pay a high level of tax on their chosen purchase which could be argued covers any hospitalisation and medical costs required due to their actions.
Drivers - pay for Green Slips to cover any long term health outcomes from an accident. Not sure about you, but when I drive I don't make a conscious decision to have an crash.........but I can't control random factors or other drivers causing an accident.
Junk Food - a junk food tax has been spoken of for a while. Maybe only a matter of time before it is implemented so have same outcome as smokers.
Alcohol - tax and duty applied.
Sun/skin Cancer - too many variables to directly blame someone, genetics etc.
Swimming etc - again mostly accidents. Not many conscious decisions to drown I suspect.

Anti-vaxers are making a conscious decision to not apply the known medically approved preventative course of action. They are in part, along with the Governments ineptitude on the supply and ordering of sufficient vaccines and AZ mixed messaging, holding us hostage to lockdowns now and in the potential future. If they are making a choice, they must also by default and morally accept any outcomes from their choice. The Government already apply limits of care or cost under Medicare, so it would not be a massive jump to put Covid treatment on that list.

If you have read some of my previous posts, I have lost my job in long haul aviation because of the current situation, and the longer this drags on, the longer it is until I return to employment or I leave the industry. Probably that is why I am for a stick rather than carrot approach.

themerlin

Maybe a middle ground is let them get free treatment on the condition they have the word TWAT tattooed on their forehead

Beoz

Does anyone know what the vaccine brand distribution is in the UK? How many have had AZ, how many have had Pfizer. Google isn't really presenting that info to me however someone may have a good source.

Looks like the UK's 3rd wave has peaked and been on the decline for a week now.

themerlin

They claim it's the hot weather and the end of the Euros that have caused the decline, still too early to tell id the end of lock down has had an effect yet but finger crossed.

Amazulu

I read somewhere recently that it's around 20 million people in the UK and about 100 million in the EU - but I also cannot find anything official online

Beoz

It's a struggle to find. I too read somewhere AZ was about 50% but cannot locate that figure.

Beoz

Or maybe it's fizzling out, bit like the Spanish flu did. This wave is seeing the final unvaxxed and no immunity picked off. Here's hoping.

abner

[double post]

abner

We could probably argue all day about the details of these various categories of 'risk-takers'. But in general, you'd be mistaken to assume that there's any kind of consistent "cost-recovery for adverse health outcomes" equation used in setting taxes on smokers, alcohol-consumers, road-users, and the like. They're taxes, full stop.

But who are the "anti-vaxers", precisely, that you want to penalise?
- the choosy, like me, who weren't 'hesitant' or 'anti' at all, but held out long enough to get the right one?- the could-be-willing, but-severely-baffled types who are receiving Melbourne-weather-like ("4 seasons in a day") advice regarding AZ risks, eligibility, and effectiveness, from- the could-be-willing, but drag-their-feet types, who can't be bothered to make any special effort, unless it comes to their doorstep
- Actual anti-vaxxers, who reject the whole idea of vaccines generally, and CoVID-19 ones in particular.
I think that on any realistic evaluation of the situation, that the Feds ineptitude regarding vaccine supply is currently *the* key restraining factor on Australia's failure to achieve the kind of herd immunity that might take us out of Delta-related lockdowns. The second most important factor would be the over-reliance on AZ, in the face of continuing doubt about its risk/reward ratio, especially for those under 60, which is just a different aspect of the first factor.

I don't doubt that the 'true' anti-vaxxers will have *some* impact on Australia's schedule to achieve true herd immunity in the long run. But they're pretty much a non-factor in NSW's present crisis. There aren't enough Pfizer vaccines to go around, and there aren't enough takers (not that I blame them, personally) for AZ, for vaccination on its own to bail out NSW, from a late and insufficiently hard lockdown.

Beoz

I reckon this is about 4-6 weeks off in Sydney. It wouldn't be fair to do until the entire adult population has been offered a vaccine (which has now happened in Sydney) and you would then need to make sure the voters are on board. Once that hits first dose of 50% which Sydney should hit in about 2-3 weeks, on current trajectory, with the additional AstraZeneca's going in arms, which is already seeing pharmacies booked out in western Sydney, you can be pretty confident as a government you aren't making an unpopular decision. It will take another 2-3 weeks to come up which sticks you are going to use to get the vaccine hesitators, or the vaccine of choice shoppers over the line. Forget the anti vaxxers, they have already made their bed.

Pollyana

Overheard whilst walking past 2 women in Brisbane yesterday - "Well I've been vaccinated against Rabies and Smallpox, I'm sure one of those will cover this Covid thing too"

Beoz

Did you ask them if they knew the brand name of the small pox vaccine that was used? I mean we are all brand name experts of vaccines these days

Beoz

Boom. NSW brings out the first stick.

Premier Gladys Berejiklian said students from those areas would be only be allowed to return to the classroom on August 16 if they had taken up the offer of a vaccine.

themerlin

must have had a few interesting experiences to get those jabs

Beoz

You will take your vaccine - says Mark McGowen

I actually have no problem with this. We should have more of these little incentives and protections. We are at a stage where we can start pulling the stick out on vaccine requirements.

I also have no problem with the negative PCR test either 72 hours before either.

I have no problem with tests on day 2 and 12.

But you are not eliminating all risk here so its pointless then asking for 14 days quarantine, and whats the point of being vaccinated if you are going to a hermit state with 14 days quarantine.

The final bit again very silly from McGowen.

https://www.news.com.au/travel/trave...91ee2a8632f6bd