The ACT government has asked Canberrans to avoid booking into its main COVID-19 vaccination centre for "a few days" as it manages a change in Commonwealth policy.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced the new approach on Thursday night, saying Australians aged under 50 will be advised to take the Pfizer vaccine rather than the previously recommended AstraZeneca drug.
The switch was based on emerging concerns about an extremely low risk of serious blood clots in younger patients.
ACT Health Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith said a new shipment of Pfizer medication arrived in Canberra on Friday, which would allow vaccinations to continue in the short term with minimal delays.
However, health officials were still working out how the changed policy would affect the ACT's overall vaccination program.
"We're still working through what the longer-term consequences of this on our rollout are going to be," Ms Stephen-Smith said.
The ACT is currently administering phase 1b of the vaccine rollout, which includes Canberrans aged 70 or older, healthcare and other essential workers, and people with underlying health problems that make them more vulnerable to the respiratory disease.
The new approach will not affect Canberrans aged 50 or older — they will continue to receive the AstraZeneca vaccine because studies show older people face far smaller risks of serious complications than younger people.
Ms Stephen-Smith praised healthcare workers for their efforts on Thursday night, when they scrambled to prepare Pfizer vaccines for younger Canberrans who were scheduled to receive their shots on Friday.
She said she was confident the ACT could adapt quickly to the new medical advice but acknowledged it would slow it down.
"This change in the … advice will impact the rollout," she said.
"[We will] continue to work with the Commonwealth to understand when we're going to be getting new doses of Pfizer vaccine, and how frequent that is, so that we can then plan for those appointments."
