South Australia will take delivery of 20,000 doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday, as work continues to roll out the vaccination program across the state.
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SA has already received about 8000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine and expects another 4000 in coming days.
Health Minister Stephen Wade said the state remained on track to administer all 12,000 Pfizer doses in the first three weeks.
He said the AstraZeneca vaccine was a great addition with less requirement for it to be stored at the same low temperatures as the Pfizer jab.
The minister said that meant it would likely be used to vaccinate high-priority people in regional areas.
The timing of the rollout would depend on the ability of clinics to quickly scale-up their operations with its arrival earlier than originally expected.
"We're likely to have a particular focus on our ambulance service and our country local health networks," Mr Wade said.
"We have begun the rollout of the state's biggest-ever peacetime operation.
"Given the scale and complexity of the operation in front of us, we know that there will be road bumps, but we are determined to ensure the safe, efficient and timely delivery of vaccines in a prioritised manner over the course of 2021."
As part of its program, SA opened its third vaccine clinic in Adelaide on Tuesday at the Women's and Children's Hospital.
Frontline health workers would be the first to be jabbed and hospital chief executive Lindsey Gough said staff were excited to begin the rollout.
"We've had a huge amount of interest already from staff wanting to be involved in the vaccine rollout and we are determined to play our part in delivering these vaccines in a safe and efficient way," she said.
South Australia reported two new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, both women in their 60s in hotel quarantine.
SA currently has just three active infections, all returned travellers in isolation.
Australian Associated Press
