Australian government does deal to secure potential Oxford University Covid vaccine

Scott Morrison says the Oxford vaccine, which will be made available for free, is one of the most advanced and promising in the world'

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The Morrison government says it has reached an agreement with the British pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca to supply Australians with the University of Oxford Covid-19 vaccine for free - assuming it clears clinical trials.

The vaccine agreement also includes a $24.7m contract with medical technology company Becton Dickinson for the supply of needles and syringes to make sure there is sufficient supply on hand to roll out the vaccine nationally.