State’s top Covid-19 committee to debate restrictions to ease including dancing and hospitality density

Allowing dancing, boosting customer levels in pubs and nightclubs as well as easing quarantine rules are at the top of the agenda for the state’s Covid-19 authorities to debate on Thursday.

Allowing public dancing, boosting customer levels in pubs and nightclubs as well as easing quarantine rules are at the top of the agenda for the state’s Covid-19 authorities to debate.

The Covid Ready Committee will on Thursday discuss health, economic and wider social advice around a fourth tranche of restrictions for Police Commissioner Grant Stevens to ease.

Sources say authorities hope to allow for a “significant movement” in relaxed legal directions – the fourth stage of fortnightly reviews and the last before the March 19 state poll – but a sudden spike in daily Covid cases could delay or change any decisions.

Mr Stevens, who authorises all Covid rules as state co-ordinator, is hoping to arrive at a “baseline” set of restrictions that could be announced as early as Thursday afternoon.

Authorities hope to be able to ease dancing and drinking rules at licensed venues including nightclubs.

Senior government sources said “high on the agenda” will be increasing hospitality and business density to full capacity, the return of dancing across licensed venues and singing as well as increasing gym attendance.

Chief public health officer, Professor Nicola Spurrier, has also been reviewing the week long quarantine rules for Covid infectious patients along with isolation requirements for close contacts of cases.

The committee will discuss her review along with evidence on how restrictions have been eased interstate.

But sources say scrapping mandatory mask use in public location indoors, such as shops or transport, will be among the last restrictions to go while Mr Stevens is unlikely to lift usage after Thursday’s meeting.

Police Commissioner Grant Stevens will make the final decision. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Brenton Edwards

Medical chiefs believe masks offer the best and simplest form of protection without impacting on economic activity or being a “burden on people’s lives” albeit being an “annoyance”.

While an extra 500 cases have emerged on the previous 24 hours over the past consecutive days, there has been a noticeable fall in the rate of hospital admissions – Mr Stevens’ key indicator to ease restrictions along with vaccination rates.

“The joker in the pack is (Prof Spurrier’s) views and whether she puts a handbrake on and how this is then reflected to (the Commissioner) in terms of case numbers,” one senior source said.

Sources say a hospital admission lag time of between 10 days and a fortnight is a factor the committee will scrutinise while almost 70 per cent of eligible adults have their third booster vaccine.

Chief Public Health Officer Professor Nicola Spurrier will also have input. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Kelly Barnes

SA Health on Wednesday recorded a second consecutive day of 500 additional new infections on the previous 24 hours as three more Covid-related deaths were reported.

Two men in their 90s and a woman in her 70s are the latest infectious patients to die.

Wednesday’s 2,560 cases follows 2,089 on Tuesday.

The number of active, or infectious patients, is also at its highest level of 20,079, for the first time in more than a month.

But the number of patients in hospital – the key indicator authorities are watching closely – continues to fall with 90 cases.

Another two extra patients have been admitted to intensive care, bringing the total to 15. Two are in induced comas on ventilators.