Queenslanders are being offered a chance to win footy tickets for getting their COVID-19 vaccine, again, after the Therapeutic Goods Administration backflipped on rules for incentives.
An incensed Health Minister Yvette D'Ath on Thursday described as "bureaucracy gone mad" the move to disallow the government from offering tickets to NRL fans for rolling up their sleeves for a COVID-19 jab.
The NRL suspended the tickets based on TGA advice that they can only be offered to people who were fully vaccinated, Ms D'Ath said on Thursday, adding that she and the chief health officer would write to the regulatory body for reconsideration.
The TGA amended their rules overnight to say incentives "can offer valuable consideration (cash or other rewards) to people who have been partly or fully vaccinated under the Government's national COVID-19 vaccination program".
"Whether the offer is to be made for first or full vaccination is a decision for the organisation offering the incentive," the rules state.
The federal government has been in contact with the NRL to assure that anyone who receives a vaccine gets a chance at a ticket to the matches - regardless of whether it is their first or second dose.
So far 3000 tickets are on offer for two finals games in Brisbane this weekend, with 2000 available for Friday's match between Manly and South Sydney and 1000 for Saturday's preliminary final between Melbourne and Penrith.
Anyone who receives their first or second jab at the Boondall or Logan Entertainment Centre, the Mt Warren Park vaccine hub or the new Pinkenba mass vaccination centre are eligible for the tickets.
Australian Associated Press
