Health

Queensland follows NSW and Victoria in removing close contact rules with Covid


Health authorities in Queensland are weighing whether to follow the lead of other eastern states and relax isolation requirements for household contacts of COVID-19.

Health Secretary Yvette D’Ath will meet Chief Medical Officer John Gerrard on Wednesday to discuss whether the step should be taken.

NSW and Victoria will scrap the requirement on Friday night, and Ms D’Ath said having similar rules across the country was welcome.

“I want this to be a national decision where all the states and territories make the changes at once to avoid any confusion,” she said.

Close contacts are now subject to a seven-day quarantine period, starting from when they were last exposed to a known case.

Queensland could follow NSW and Victoria in removing Covid close contact requirements (pictured: Queensland Prime Minister Annastacia Palaszczuk with Scott Morrison in March)

Queensland could follow NSW and Victoria in removing Covid close contact requirements (pictured: Queensland Prime Minister Annastacia Palaszczuk with Scott Morrison in March)

Queensland could follow NSW and Victoria in removing Covid close contact requirements (pictured: Queensland Prime Minister Annastacia Palaszczuk with Scott Morrison in March)

They are also identified by spending more than four hours with someone in the same residence.

The Health Secretary said she was waiting for more details on plans south of the border, including what would be required to contact households if they were no longer confined to their homes. surname.

The Principals Committee on Health Protection in Australia has previously recommended a consistent nationwide transition to the elimination of close contact rules.

After the peak of the Omicron wave, it said isolation could be replaced with frequent rapid tests, masks and avoiding high-risk settings.

The briefing with Dr Gerrard is expected to include an update on the pressures in the health system affected by staff needing to be quarantined or quarantined.

Ms D’Ath said: ‘Clearly we know that fostering close relationships will help bring more people back to work, both within the health system (and) in the wider community, both help businesses and the economy.

Queenslanders must now quarantine for seven days if they are deemed to be in close contact (pictured: The pair wore masks in Brisbane in November)

Queenslanders must now quarantine for seven days if they are deemed to be in close contact (pictured: The pair wore masks in Brisbane in November)

Queenslanders must now quarantine for seven days if they are deemed to be in close contact (pictured: The pair wore masks in Brisbane in November)

But the removal of the rules will inevitably lead to an increase in positive cases. “It’s a given and everyone needs to be prepared … when there are change(s) to the closely related rules,” the Health Secretary said.

Meanwhile, Ms. D’Ath acknowledged that the number of cases is probably much lower than the actual number of infected people in the community.

Queensland reported another 8,995 COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, with just under 600 people hospitalized with the virus.

The health minister said data from hospitals is a more reliable indicator of how the current Omicron wave is being tracked. “That doesn’t change, even if there are 10 times the number of cases out there,” she said.



Source link

news7f

News7F: Update the world's latest breaking news online of the day, breaking news, politics, society today, international mainstream news .Updated news 24/7: Entertainment, Sports...at the World everyday world. Hot news, images, video clips that are updated quickly and reliably

Related Articles

Back to top button