Covid border rules causing regional people ‘emotional turmoil’

In the city, people worry about dancing. But in the regions, Covid rules stop kids seeing their dads for months and people can’t access medical care.

A community leader has bemoaned how border controls are splitting regional families and stopping them from accessing work and medical treatment, while debate in Adelaide focuses on stand-up drinking and dancing.

Cross Border Call Out group organiser Paula Gust, who advocates for border community members, also says poor mental health is a major problem. Ms Gust thrust the plight of cross-border community members into the spotlight on Thursday during a Covid-19 Response Select Committee hearing in state parliament.

“We’re essentially a line of steel for SA and there’s no reward for our compliance,” she said.

“A lot of people are at their wits’ end. The emotional turmoil is huge.”

Cross-border community members can travel within 70km of the SA-Victoria borderfor reasons including care, education, work, essential supplies, health treatments and sport. They must not associate with anybody who has been further than 70km into Victoria in the 14 days before they return to SA. Ms Gust said the rules meant many border community members were adding to the backlog of 7000 travel exemption applications awaiting SA Health’s assessment.

Cross Border Call Out group organiser Paula Gust and her daughter Holli. Picture: Brenton Edwards

“People have made changes or are renting in SA so they don’t have to cross the border all the time,” she said. “Kids are not coming home (from boarding school) for seven months to see their mum and dad.”

The rules were creating inequity between city and country residents, Ms Gust said.

“People in press conferences are … having long discussions about whether they have to remain sitting (when) drinking or stand, or whether there’s dancing and singing, (while) the people on the border are in tears saying, ‘I’m going to lose my job and my children haven’t seen their father in months’.”

Meanwhile, Mental Health Coalition of SA executive director Geoff Harris told the committee young people were experiencing greater stress levels and having difficulty accessing support amid “chronic underfunding” of community support.

An SA Health spokeswoman said easing restrictions was a matter for the transition committee and based on a risk-assessment analysis.

“Our no. 1 priority is protecting the health and safety of our community,” she said.