‘Too Early’ to Scrap Mandatory Covid Isolation in Aus

CANBERRA:
The Australian Medical Association (AMA) on Friday said it was “too early” to end the mandatory Covid-19 isolation periods, warning that it would trigger another wave of the pandemic.

Federal, state and territory leaders late in September agreed to end mandatory isolation requirements for Covid-19, which will come into effect on October 14, with each jurisdiction implementing the change via relevant public health legislation, reports Xinhua news agency.

Commenting on the decision, AMA President Steve Robson said he was “very concerned” about another wave.

“All the signs are that we’re looking at another wave of Covid,” he told local media.

“We’re coming out of one of the biggest waves of Covid yet and it has absolutely crushed hospital workforce and left us with a massive logjam and backlog in hospitals at the moment that has to be dealt with.

“If we have another wave over the holiday season, then it spells bad news for the country because we can’t tackle that backlog,” Robson added.

The Department of Health on Friday provided updates on national Covid-19 weekly current trends.

“Over the last week, 36,242 cases of Covid-19 were reported across Australia, an average of 5,177 cases per day,” it said on its website.

The number of cases being treated in hospitals at a seven-day average is 1,548.

As of Friday, Australia’s overall Covid caseload and death toll stood at 10,269,925 and 15,319, respectively.