Scott Morrison has played down new polling that suggests one-third of Australian adults are unwilling to be vaccinated against coronavirus.
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The prime minister said he was not overly troubled by the vaccine hesitancy, but conceded it was something authorities needed to work on.
He is more interested in the 70 per cent of respondents who are keen to receive their jabs.
"Let's just get on with them," Mr Morrison said on Wednesday.
"There's plenty of time to have the chat with the others who are a bit hesitant. That's alright, it's a free country and they should talk to their doctor.
"Those who are hardcore against it is a much smaller number - a much, much smaller number - but there are others who are open to the conversation and we will have that."
An alarming poll published by Nine Entertainment has found almost one in three Australian adults are unlikely to be vaccinated.
Doubts about side effects top the list of reasons for vaccine hesitancy, while many people also believe there is no rush to take the jab while the international borders remain closed.
The survey found 15 per cent of people said they were not at all likely to receive the vaccine, while another 14 per cent said they were not very likely.
The prime minister said with zero community transmissions, Australia was in a different position to other parts of the world, where people were forced to choose between having a vaccine or putting their lives at risk.
Mr Morrison said the risk of getting coronavirus was not perceived as that high in Australia.
The federal government has spent months arguing there is no urgency on vaccines and more recently concerns have been raised about the efficacy of the AstraZeneca jab.
Liz Chatwin, the president of AstraZeneca in Australia and New Zealand, has sought to ease concerns among people aged over 50 who are feeling some hesitancy about getting the vaccine.
"The AstraZeneca vaccine is highly effective - it has actually been used in tens of millions of people around the world, and in the vast majority of people it is extremely well tolerated," she told the ABC.
Ms Chatwin said blood clots linked to the vaccine were extremely rare, with just 18 cases reported in Australia out of 1.8 million vaccinations.
"Those rates are very similar to what have been seen overseas but the difference here in Australia, the experts are saying, is that the cases appear to be more mild," she said.
"They are speculating this is because there is high awareness here in Australia, physicians don't have the huge strain of treating COVID-19 in our healthcare system, so they have been diagnosed earlier and managed really effectively with good outcomes."
Ms Chatwin said the number of blood clots linked to the vaccine also needed to be put in context.
"Experts have reported there are 50 blood clots every day in Australia from a multitude of different causes, so that just underlines how rare this condition is," she said.
"I would just encourage people, the only way to end this pandemic is for people to come forward and receive the vaccine that's offered.
"It's really not just for ourselves, but it's for our friends, our family, our neighbours and for the community as a whole."
Australian Associated Press
