Minister Fyles defends NT’s health response to Covid-19 and Berrimah Quest bookout
Health Minister Natasha Fyles has refused to outline key details about why Quest Berrimah was fully booked, in an incident which caused people’s bookings to be suddenly cancelled.
Northern Territory
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HEALTH Minister Natasha Fyles has refused to say how much money taxpayers have forked out to book out every room at Quest Berrimah.
During a long session in NT Estimates on Wednesday, Ms Fyles also said she was unaware of who was staying at the facility, which the Health Department booked out in early June.
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The NT News understands staff for the expanded Howard Springs quarantine facility will be staying at the serviced apartments but Ms Fyles has refused to be confirm this.
During her appearance at Estimates, she again apologised after tourists had their bookings cancelled en masse after NT Health booked the Quest. “We certainly did not ask the Quest to cancel bookings and we apologise to those people that were impacted.”
Ms Fyles was unsure whether there was an extension clause in NT Health’s contract with Quest when asked by Opposition leader Lia Finocchiaro. It came as the Opposition continued to question why changes to Covid-19 testing of quarantine workers at the Howard Springs facility were made.
Despite a lengthy questioning over why rapid antigen testing was scrapped in favour of PCR testing, CLP health spokesman Bill Yan said he was yet to be convinced the change was for the better.
“When I spoke to (Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt) he doesn’t know why they changed that,” Mr Yan said.
“I’m going to keep doing my research, I’m going to keep listening to the various professionals.”
Deputy chief health officer Charles Pain said the decision to switch from rapid antigen testing was made because PCR was the “gold standard” and was much more sensitive to Covid-19, particularly during the early phases of an infection.
It was revealed during Estimates that there had been two false positives detected at Howard Springs when AUSMAT was in charge.
The Health Minister also defended the vaccine rollout to remote communities, saying crews would continue to push for as many Aboriginal people to be vaccinated as possible. “We will keep working as much as we need to … provide them with the vaccination,” Ms Fyles said.
“It’s more of a slow grinding hard work but it will be done until the whole of the Territory is vaccinated.”
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