Attention: Christian

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST – NOTIFICATION OF RECEIPT AND REQUEST FOR AN EXTENSION OF TIME

I am writing to notify you that the Department of Health (department) received your request on 18 August 2021 for access to documents under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth) (FOI Act) being:

"The criteria for 'residential setting' for people with disability in the 1a rollout 2. The number of FIRST vaccines received by people with disability in residential settings in the 1a rollout to date 3. The number of people with disability fully vaccinated under the 1a rollout to date 4. The number of people vaccinated in the 1b rollout to date 5. The number of NDIS participants 1) partly and b) fully vaccinated to date"

The statutory timeframe for processing your request is 30 calendar days within which a decision on access to the requested documents is to be notified. The department may impose a charge for the work involved in providing access to the documents. If this request attracts a charge you will be notified in writing.

Unless you advise otherwise, duplicate documents and Commonwealth employee names and contact details below Senior Executive Service level and mobile telephone numbers of all staff will be excluded from the scope of your request under s22(1)(a)(ii) of the FOI Act.

Request for extension of time

As a result of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the department is dealing with a very high volume of FOI requests. To ensure the department can process your request in accordance with the requirements of the FOI Act, including locating and providing access to all relevant documents, the department would be grateful if you would agree to an extension of 30 calendar days for processing your request. If you agree, the department will endeavour to provide a decision to you by 17 October 2021.

Please contact the department by 27 August 2021 with your decision to the 30 day extension of processing time.

You can contact the FOI Unit via email at [email address], should you have any questions.

Kind regards
FOI Officer

FOI and Legislation Support Section
Legal & Assurance Division |  Corporate Operations Group
Legal Advice & Legislation Branch
Australian Government Department of Health
E: [Health request email] 
GPO Box 9848, Canberra ACT 2601, Australia

The Department of Health acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Australia and their continued connection to land, sea and community. We pay our respects to all Elders past and present. 

If you receive this email in error, please delete it and contact the sender immediately.

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Dear Christian,

I refer to your correspondence of 18 August 2021 to the Department of
Health (department) in the following terms:

Please provide the following information about the 1a and 1b rollout with
regard to provision of vaccinations for people with disability;

1. The criteria for 'residential setting' for people with disability in
the 1a rollout

2. The number of FIRST vaccines received by people with disability in
residential settings in the 1a rollout to date

3. The number of people with disability fully vaccinated under the 1a
rollout to date

4. The number of people vaccinated in the 1b rollout to date

5. The number of NDIS participants 1) partly and b) fully vaccinated to
date

I am writing to advise you that your request in its current format is not
valid under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act). The FOI Act
provides a mechanism for individuals to access ‘documents’ held by
entities such as the department. It does not provide a mechanism for
making enquiries for information or asking questions about issues.

However, the department wishes to provide you with the following
information in response to your enquiry:

o Regarding point 1, the phase 1a rollout to disability residential
accommodation sites eligibility criteria includes a person with
disability living in residential accommodation (in settings with two
or more people with disability only).
o Regarding points 2 to 4, daily data on COVID-19 cases in Australia is
publicly available on the department’s website at
[1]https://www.health.gov.au/initiatives-an....
This includes the vaccination rate of people with disability living in
shared accommodation.
o Regarding point 5, data reported by the National COVID Vaccine
Taskforce is taken from the Australian Immunisation Register. The
Australian Immunisation Register does not record people’s occupation,
place of work or existing health conditions, nor does it identify
whether someone has a disability or not. As a result, the vaccination
of people in phase 1b is part of the general population statistics and
not separately reported. 

I trust this information will be of assistance to you.

On this basis, if you wish to submit a valid FOI request, we would greatly
appreciate if you could provide us with more information on the specific
documents you are seeking.

Please contact the FOI Unit at [2][email address] should you have any
further questions.

Kind regards

FOI Officer

FOI Unit – FOI and Legislation Section

Legal & Assurance Division |  Corporate Operations Group

Legal Advice & Legislation Branch

Australian Government Department of Health

E: [3][email address] 

GPO Box 9848, Canberra ACT 2601, Australia

The Department of Health acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of
Australia and their continued connection to land, sea and community. We
pay our respects to all Elders past and present. 

If you receive this email in error, please delete it and contact the
sender immediately.

"Important: This transmission is intended only for the use of the
addressee and may contain confidential or legally privileged information. 
If you are not the intended recipient, you are notified that any use or
dissemination of this communication is strictly prohibited.  If you
receive this transmission in error please notify the author immediately
and delete all copies of this transmission."

References

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1. https://www.health.gov.au/initiatives-an...
2. mailto:[email address]
3. mailto:[email address]