Coronavirus Qld: Leaders pursue impossible goal of eliminating virus

Australia’s stunning success in flattening the coronavirus curve has spurred some leaders to seek to eliminate it – but it’s not going to happen, writes Renee Viellaris.

IN THESE stressful pandemic times, our leaders have done well, but they have failed to articulate one message: Learning to live with the virus.

Australia’s success has shocked even our health experts, and at some point the success encouraged some leaders to shift the goalposts.

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Australia is no longer in a health crisis – we are now in an economic one – yet some leaders are pursing the goal of eliminating the virus.

That is not going to happen, and the more the focus on that the more it has an impact on the economy and social fabric.

By the end of the week, Australia will probably have 500 active cases of COVID-19.

That’s too few cases to continue to strangle the economy.

It’s time for the tough talk. Australia can no longer wrap itself in cotton wool and wait for a vaccine.

It’s time to go back to work. It’s time to go back to school. And it’s time to try to go back to normal – as much as possible.

For those who are aged or have comorbidities, their world should remain status quo because their safety remains at risk.

But for the rest of the country, it is time to live with the virus.

And that means social distancing remains, practising good hygiene and locking down communities when there is an outbreak.

Many people have pointed to Singapore as how the curve can be brought under control, only for it to blow out again in a second wave.

But that is a spurious argument. Singapore brings in a lot of poorer migrant workers who provide duties for richer families and those migrants live in often cramped conditions.

The breakouts were mostly in those migrant communities – Australia does not have similar issues to deal with.

Australians have to learn to live with this virus and understand there will be disruptions to our lives until there is a vaccine, a preventive deployment or herd immunity.

States have an enviable position because in one sense, when it comes to the economy, the Commonwealth is picking up the tab – whether it’s for JobKeeper, JobSeeker and the free childcare package, which seems to have some teething problems that need to be fixed quickly.

Once states begin lifting more social, schooling and economic conditions before others, it
creates two issues: they get a head start on their economies; and it may lead to interstate coronavirus refugees.

If one state is markedly ahead of others, then surely that it will be tempting for interstate migration – especially if the delays in one state drag on for months.

On Friday, National Cabinet will lay out a further road map to easing restrictions and it is likely in that briefing that Prime Minister Scott Morrison will release the timetable for travel across the ditch.

Obviously for that to work, NZ and Australia will need to having a tracing app that is effective.

And just like anti-vaxxers are a burden on our health system, those refusing to download the coronavirus app are a burden on our economy.

They are probably one and the same.

Part of living with the virus is ensuring the app is on as many phones as possible.

If there are financial penalties for failing to vaccinate children (in other words “no jab no pay”), then at some point “no download no play” should be considered by our leaders.