Is it time to rethink vaccine mandates for dining, fitness and events? We asked 5 experts

Person showing proof of vaccination on their phone — Rob Blakers/AAP

Liam Petterson, The Conversation, Catherine Bennett, Holly Seale, Julian Savulescu, Katie Attwell, Tony Blakely

Author

Liam Petterson
Deputy Politics Editor, The Conversation Australia

Interviewed

Catherine Bennett
Chair in Epidemiology, Deakin University
Holly Seale
Associate professor, UNSW Sydney
Julian Savulescu
Visiting Professor in Biomedical Ethics, Murdoch Children's Research Institute; Distinguished Visiting Professor in Law, University of Melbourne; Uehiro Chair in Practical Ethics, University of Oxford
Katie Attwell
Associate Professor, School of Social Sciences, The University of Western Australia
Tony Blakely
Professor of Epidemiology, Population Interventions Unit, Centre for Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne

Partners

The requirement to show proof of two doses of a COVID vaccine to do things such as eat out, go to the pub and visit sporting events is still in place across parts of the country including Victoria, Queensland and Western Australia.

Part of the rationale for such mandates is to limit transmission of the virus, and therefore also protect vulnerable people who may be at risk of severe disease.

But the arrival of the Omicron variant has changed the COVID landscape in Australia. Emerging evidence suggests two doses of COVID vaccine provides little protection against infection against the highly-infectious Omicron variant – though they’re still effective against severe disease.

So we asked five experts, is it time to rethink vaccine mandates for dining, fitness and events?

Here’s what they said.

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