Advertising in Australia in support of immunization caused a negative reaction in the country because of the graphic image of a young woman with COVID-19.
A government video shows a woman in a hospital bed breathing hard and struggling to catch her breath while connected to a ventilator.
The text says: “COVID-19 can affect anyone … Book vaccination.”
Critics say the ads are unfairly targeted at young people, as they will not vaccinate people under the age of 40 by the end of the year.
Officials also encourage young people to wait for Pfizer doses, which are currently lacking in Australia, instead of the available AstraZeneca.
Currently, advertising is shown only in Sydney, where the outbreak of the “Delta” exploded, and the city is in the third week of isolation. Authorities announced 112 new cases on Monday.
This ad is part of a larger “Arms” vaccination campaign that kicks off on Sunday.
“Why are we targeting young people? Shouldn’t we be targeting growing dissatisfaction with vaccines in older people over 55? – said another Twitter user. Health experts have called for the video to be removed from the air, calling it “insensitive” but the government has protected advertising. WARNING: Here is the GRAPHIC Australian Government #COVID19 ad to run in Sydney. #COVID19nsw pic.twitter.com/6IXgBy7miw — Karen Barlow (@KJBar) July 11, 2021 Australia’s Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly said the purpose of the announcement was to “spread information” about the need to stay home, get tested and order vaccines. “We only do this because of the situation in Sydney,” he said. On Sunday, the authorities of Australia’s largest city registered the country’s first death from COVID-19 this year. The Sydney wave has drawn widespread criticism over the distribution of federal government vaccines. Immunization began in February, but was postponed due to Pfizer’s lack of vaccines, public complacency, and confusing reports about the risks associated with AstraZeneca. Slightly more than 10% of the population is fully vaccinated.