Coronavirus Australia live news: Virus vaccine ‘won’t be compulsory’: PM
Scott Morrison promises any coronavirus vaccine will not be compulsory, despite saying earlier in the day that it should be as ‘mandatory as possible’.
- Vaccine ‘won’t be compulsory’: PM
- Fears as virus spreads among Indigenous people
- Vaccine should be mandatory: PM
- Victoria has 216 cases, 12 deaths
- Warnings over Sydney supercluster
- Probe into Sydney hotel breach
Welcome to The Australian’s rolling coverage of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Amid Australia’s deal and high hopes for a coronavirus vaccine, it won’t be compulsory, says PM Scott Morrison, despite his hopes 95 per cent of people would take it. Victoria has confirmed 216 new cases of coronavirus today, while NSW has seven. There are fresh concerns about Covid’s case growth among Indigenous people in Victoria’s regions. Police and health officials are trying to establish how a security guard contracted COVID-19 from a quarantined guest in Sydney.
Natasha Robinson, Jared Lynch 10.45pm: Months left in race to vaccine
Scientists are increasingly confident of a coronavirus vaccine within months, paving the way for a global economic recovery in one of the largest-ever rollouts of a medical treatment.
Robyn Ironside, Damon Johnston 10.15pm: Grounded airports ‘on a runway to ruin’
Canberra Airport’s CEO has asked Scott Morrison to back a national plan to get domestic flights back to at least a quarter of their pre-pandemic capacity.
Ben Packham 9.45pm: China testing its vaccine in PNG
A Chinese mining company in Papua New Guinea claims to have immunised its employees against COVID-19 in an apparent vaccination trial.
Rosie Lewis 9.15pm: Food shortages if workers restricted by borders
Australia’s farmers fear there could be more food shortages unless they can access workers.
Yoni Bashan 8.45pm: State faced $2.1bn a week lockdown loss
Economic modelling showed that a lockdown would cost NSW $2.1bn for every week it was imposed.
Amanda Hodge, Chandni Vasandani 8.20pm: Red flags as Indonesian uni claims it has cure
An experimental Indonesian drug treatment for COVID-19 patients has drawn scientific scepticism amid fears it is being fast-tracked without full clinical trials.
Adeshola Ore 7.50pm: Alert over Brisbane-Sydney flight
A coronavirus alert has been raised for a Virgin flight from Brisbane to Sydney on Monday.
The female passenger on Virgin flight VA962 tested positive for COVID-19 after returning to Japan from Brisbane, via Sydney, Queensland Health said on Wednesday night.
Japanese health authorities advised Queensland Health of the case on Wednesday. Queensland Chief Health Officer Dr Jeanette Young said contract tracing is underway.
Queensland Health authorities are working with their NSW counterpart to contact those sitting near the passenger on the flight.
The woman arrived in Australia in mid-July and was in hotel quarantine in Sydney for two weeks prior to coming to Brisbane. The state’s Chief Health Officer said she returned two negative COVID-19 results while in quarantine.
“Because she quarantined in Sydney and travelled straight to Brisbane from hotel quarantine, she could go about her normal life in Brisbane,” Dr Jeannette Young said.
“However, on her arrival to Japan on August 18, she was asymptomatic but returned a positive COVID-19 result.
Queensland Health is trying to determine where the woman acquired the virus and is working with Japanese authorities. Six close contacts have been identified and placed in isolation.
The woman also dined at the Jam Pantry café at Greenslopes, in Brisbane’s southeast, on Sunday from 9.45am to 11am. The health authority said anyone who dined at the cafe at this time would be contacted by the department. People who dined at the venue outside of this time should monitor symptoms and get tested if they present.
READ MORE: Where does the buck stop with the PM?
Jared Lynch 7.20pm: CSL push for vaccine within a year
‘Emergency doses’ of a COVID-19 vaccine could be delivered by the middle of next year after CSL tightened its development timeline.
Kellie Southan 6.50pm: Active cases in Victoria: map
Rachel Baxendale 6.40pm: Active cases by LGA: full list
Active confirmed cases of COVID-19 by LGA as of Wednesday, with net increase since Tuesday in brackets:
Wyndham (outer southwest): 811 (-20)
Brimbank (outer west): 743 (-7)
Hume (outer north): 527 (-4)
Whittlesea (outer north): 476 (-6)
Melton (outer northwest): 459 (-8)
Moreland (north): 380 (+3)
Casey (outer southeast): 349 (-6)
Darebin (north): 298 (+4)
City of Melbourne: 274 (-4)
Moonee Valley (northwest): 212 (-7)
Maribyrnong (inner west): 207 (-7)
Greater Dandenong: (outer southeast): 200 (-6)
Hobsons Bay (inner southwest): 176 (+1)
*Greater Geelong (southwest regional Vic): 151 (-8)
Yarra (inner northeast): 135 (-1)
Kingston (southeast): 136 (+7)
Banyule (northeast): 117 (+1)
Bayside (southeast): 105 (-1)
Yarra Ranges (outer east) 98 (-10)
Frankston (outer southeast): 94 (-1)
Boroondara (east): 85 (-1)
Cardinia (outer southeast): 85 (-9)
Monash (southeast): 82 (+4)
Port Phillip (inner south): 75 (-2)
Mornington Peninsula (outer southeast): 70 (+3)
Glen Eira (east): 64 (-3)
Whitehorse (east): 63 (-4)
Knox (outer east): 58 (-3)
Manningham (east): 57 (-1)
Nillumbik (outer northeast): 54
Stonnington (inner southeast): 47 (-10)
*Greater Bendigo (central regional Vic): 38 (-6)
Maroondah (outer east): 36 (-2)
*Colac-Otway (western regional Vic): 36 (-3)
*Mitchell (central regional Vic, north of Melb): 30 (-1)
*Macedon Ranges (central regional Vic): 28 (+1)
*Ballarat (western regional Vic): 22 (-2)
*Latrobe (eastern regional Vic): 22 (-2)
*Greater Shepparton (northern regional Vic): 19
*Warrnambool (southwest regional Vic): 8 (+1)
*Moorabool (western regional Vic): 6 (+2)
*Surf Coast (southwest regional Vic): 6 (+1)
*Baw Baw (eastern regional Vic): 6
*Glenelg (western regional Vic): 5
*South Gippsland (eastern regional Vic): 4
*Golden Plains (western regional Vic): 3
*Bass Coast (southeast regional Vic): 3
*Horsham (western regional Vic): 3
*Mansfield (northeast regional Vic): 3
*Campaspe (northern regional Vic): 2
*Murrindindi (northeast regional Vic): 2
*West Wimmera (western regional Vic): 2
*Wellington (eastern regional Vic): 1 (+1)
*Mount Alexander (central regional Vic): 1
*Ararat (western regional Vic): 1
*Mildura (northwest regional Vic): 1
*Central Goldfields (central regional Vic): 1
*Moyne (southwest regional Vic): 1
Interstate: 8 (-1)
Unknown: 169 (-3)
TOTAL: 7115 (-119)
*Denotes regional Victorian LGAs
Source: Victorian Department of Health and Human Services
READ MORE: CSL push for vaccine within a year
Rachel Baxendale 6.30pm: Major Victorian clusters: full list
Other significant Victorian clusters with new coronavirus cases on Wednesday include:
● 207 cases have been linked to Bertocchi Smallgoods in Thomastown, in Melbourne’s north — the same number as Tuesday;
● 150 cases have been linked to JBS abattoir in Brooklyn, in Melbourne’s west, up from 149 on Tuesday;
● 147 cases have been linked to the Royal Melbourne Hospital Royal Park campus in Melbourne’s inner north, up from 146 on Monday;
● 64 cases have been linked to the Woolworths distribution centre in Mulgrave, in Melbourne’s southeast — the same number as Tuesday;
● 64 cases have been linked to the Linfox warehouse in Truganina, in Melbourne’s outer west, up from 63 on Tuesday;
● 46 cases linked to Nino Early Learning in Bundoora, in Melbourne’s north, up from 45 on August 8;
● 44 cases have been linked to Catholic Regional College in Sydenham, in Melbourne’s outer northwest — the same number as Tuesday;
● 35 cases have been linked to Hazeldene’s Chicken Farm in Bendigo, in central regional Victoria — the same number as Tuesday;
● 34 cases have been linked to Ingham’s Chicken in Thomastown, in Melbourne’s north, up from 33 on Tuesday;
● 33 cases have been linked to Ausfresh food manufacturing in Broadmeadows, in Melbourne’s outer north — the same number as Tuesday;
The health department is also investigating cases linked to the following locations:
● Frankston Hospital, in Melbourne’s outer southeast. “An Incident Management Team is working closely with Peninsula Health to manage this outbreak. All appropriate public health actions are being undertaken, including deep cleaning, contact tracing and testing.”
● Spotless Cleaning at Chadstone Shopping Centre in Melbourne’s southeast;
● AB Oxford Cold Storage in Laverton, in Melbourne’s west.
READ MORE: Manslaughter risk for Vic ministers
Rachel Baxendale 6.17pm: 120 Victorian aged care facilities hit by virus
As of Wednesday, there are 2050 active cases of coronavirus across 120 Victorian aged care facilities, up from 2024 cases on Tuesday.
The total number of Victorian cases linked to aged care facilities since the pandemic began is 3337, up from 3142 on Tuesday.
All of Victoria’s 12 coronavirus deaths in the 24 hours to Wednesday were linked to aged care facilities.
Of the 363 coronavirus deaths in the state since the pandemic began, 242 have been linked to aged care facilities.
The largest aged care clusters include:
- 205 cases linked to Heritage Care’s Epping Gardens facility in Melbourne’s north - the same as on Tuesday. This includes 100 residents, 77 staff and 28 contacts;
- 191 cases linked to St Basil’s Homes for the Aged in Fawkner, in Melbourne’s north, up one since Tuesday. This included 90 residents, 74 staff and 26 contacts on Tuesday. It is not clear whether the latest case is a residents, staff member or other contact;
- 157 cases linked to Estia Health in Ardeer, in Melbourne’s west - the same as on Tuesday. This includes 50 residents, 76 staff and 31 contacts;
- 147 cases linked to BaptCare Wyndham Lodge in Werribee, in Melbourne’s outer southwest, up from 136 on Tuesday. This included 60 residents, 59 staff and 17 contacts on Tuesday. It is not clear whether the latest cases are residents, staff or others;
- 131 cases linked to Kirkbrae Presbyrterian Homes in Kilsyth, in Melbourne’s outer east - the same as on Tuesday. This includes 55 residents, 51 staff and 25 contacts;
- 111 cases linked to Outlook Gardens aged care facility in Dandenong North, in Melbourne’s outer southeast - the same as on Tuesday. This includes 40 residents, 55 staff and 16 contacts;
- 110 cases linked to Estia Health in Heidelberg, in Melbourne’s northeast - the same as on Tuesday. This includes 29 residents, 57 staff and 24 contacts;
- 108 cases linked to Cumberland Manor aged care facility in Sunshine, in Melbourne’s west, up from 99 on Tuesday. This included 51 residents, 36 staff and 12 contacts on Tuesday. It is not clear whether the latest cases are residents, staff or others;
- 103 cases linked to Twin Parks aged care in Reservoir, in Melbourne’s north, up from 101 on Tuesday. This included 65 residents, 34 staff and two contacts on Tuesday. It is not clear whether the latest cases are residents, staff or others;
- 100 cases linked to Japara Goonawarra in Sunbury, in Melbourne’s outer northwest - the same as on Tuesday. This includes 48 residents, 38 staff and 14 contacts.
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Richard Ferguson 5.30pm: Coronavirus vaccine ‘won’t be compulsory’: PM
Scott Morrison has promised any coronavirus vaccine will not be compulsory, despite saying earlier in the day that it should be as “mandatory as possible”.
The Prime Minister on Wednesday morning said that the vaccine should be taken by everyone unless they had a medical exemption.
But by the afternoon, Mr Morrison said he had no power to make Australians take the vaccine, and would only introduce measures meant to encourage people to get immunised.
“It’s not going to be compulsory to get the vaccine. There are no compulsory vaccines in Australia,” he told Sydney’s 2GB radio.
“What we want to achieve is as much vaccination as we possibly can.
“There will be encouragement and measures to get as high a rate as accepting as usual.”
READ the full story: 95 per cent need to get Covid vaccine: PM
Ewin Hannan 5.05pm: Union call for public Officeworks boycott
The United Workers Union is urging the public to boycott Officeworks next Monday as distribution centre employees in NSW and Victoria take legal strike action to pressure the company to improve a wages offer.
The UWU accused Officeworks of reaping “record pandemic profits” while proposing inadequate pay rises and cuts to overtime penalties during negotiations for a new enterprise agreement covering 275 workers at three distribution centres.
The workers, which replenish the stock in Officeworks stores and fulfil online customer orders, are seeking annual pay rises of four per cent.
The union said the company was offering annual two per cent wage increases but also cuts to penalty rates paid on Saturdays and an increase in the spread of hours to 5am.
“Workers are calling for community members to support the action by not shopping at Officeworks, either online or in person, on Monday 24 August,” it said.
Matt Toner, the union’s director of logistics said it was “absolutely unacceptable in the midst of this pandemic for massive corporations to offer negligible pay increases to their essential workers and refuse to protect their job security by ensuring that their wages and conditions will not be undercut.”
“While many are struggling, business is booming for Officeworks, which has increased its profits by 41.5 per cent between 2015 to 2019 to reach $167 million,” he said.
“This has increased again during the pandemic and could not have been possible without the dedication of their workers. Since the company shifted to focus on online sales, the warehouse and logistics workers have been working harder than ever.
“We are seeking a wage increase and job security assurances that reflect the commitment workers have shown to Officeworks and the contributions they have made over the years.”
Comment has been sought from Officeworks.
READ MORE: How fishermen landed immunity clue
Adeshola Ore 4.10pm: There’s a reason for it: DCMO defends curfew
Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr Nick Coatsworth has defended Melbourne’s 8pm curfew, saying there is a medical reason behind every policy decision.
It comes as the Andrews government today moved to scrap its rule banning Victorians from driving short distances to exercise.
Dr Coatsworth said the state government’s decision to enforce an 8pm curfew under stage four restrictions would have been driven by medical evidence.
“If there was clear information available to the Victorian Government that suggested that, shall I say, after dark movement was a problem, they instituted a policy response to that,” he said.
“Every time you see one of these things, it can be safely assumed it’s actually in response to some sort of public health issue that is trying to be addressed.”
READ MORE: Victoria's Stage 4 lockdown: full details
Adeshola Ore 4.10pm: International travel resumption ‘bridge too far’
On the topic of restarting international travel, Deputy Chief Medical Officer Nick Coatsworth said it was a “bridge too far”, despite the announcement of a vaccine agreement being locked in.
“The state of the epidemic around the world and in Australia means that international travel is not at the forefront of our minds at the moment,” he said.
“Though clearly we do have the international students pilot program planning to be started and that would likely be started before a vaccine became available.”
READ MORE: Anger over priority to foreign students
Adeshola Ore 3.50pm: Australian experts will guide government on vaccine
Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr Nick Coatsworth says some of Australia’s “most eminent scientists” will guide the federal government on vaccine technology.
The Morrison government has locked in a guarantee for the Australia-wide supply of the world’s first potential COVID-19 vaccine, under a deal signed with Britain-based drug giant AstraZeneca.
“It’s critically important we get the best advice from the best people in Australia,” Dr Coatsworth said.
“That’s replicated in all of the government committees that advise the Department of Health and advise our ministers and our Prime Minister.”
On Wednesday, Australia reported 228 new cases of coronavirus, with 216 of those infections in Victoria.
Dr Coatsworth said the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee aged care submission to Friday’s national cabinet would take lessons from Victoria.
“The national cabinet has asked the AHPPC to report back on exactly the learnings from the Victorian Aged Care Response Centre,” he said.
Dr Coatsworth said the committee would also report on the federal and state health authorities and the aged care regulator.
READ MORE: 95 per cent need to get Covid vaccine: PM
Paige Taylor 3.45pm: Concerns as virus spreads among Indigenous
Confirmation that coronavirus has infected Indigenous people in two more regional centres in Victoria is causing deep concern inside the state’s network of community-controlled Indigenous health services.
There are now 65 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Aboriginal and or Torres Strait Islander communities in Victoria, up 9 on the 56 cases recorded late last week.
Previously, Ballarat was the only city outside Melbourne where Indigenous people were known to have tested positive to the virus. Now Indigenous people have tested positive in Greater Bendigo and Greater Geelong.
When the pandemic first reached Australia, the Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation was among the health services that worked with government as it shut down travel to remote communities and warned Indigenous people why they were especially vulnerable to the disease and how to prevent its spread. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have been identified among the most vulnerable cohorts, along with the elderly, because a high proportion have complicating and chronic health conditions such as diabetes, heart disease and respiratory illness.
The Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation is urging Indigenous people to look after themselves including by using available mental health services and by talking to family regularly even if they cannot visit them.
“Another large spike in confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Aboriginal and or Torres Strait Islander Communities is a stark reminder for Victorians that this pandemic is not over, and people still need to comply with the rules while staying connected,” the Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation wrote in a statement on Wednesday.
“The latest figures from the Department of Health and Human Services shows that 38 people have recovered from the virus while 27 cases are still active.
“New data shows a spike in COVID-19 cases in Hume, Yarra and Mitchell local government areas.
“Worryingly, there are also cases of COVID-19 in Aboriginal and or Torres Strait Islander communities in Greater Bendigo and Greater Geelong which shows this insidious virus is now spreading to mob in regional Victoria.”
READ MORE: Indigenous students need more support
Rachel Baxendale 3.30pm: Victoria scraps short drive to exercise ban
The Andrews government has moved to scrap its rule banning Victorians from driving short distances to exercise.
A number of people who have previously been fined for driving to local parks within a 5km radius of their homes will now have those fines overturned.
Victorian Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton told Wednesday’s press conference he would be happy to discuss the rule with Victoria Police, given people were being fined for driving to locations to which they were legally allowed to walk or cycle.
“I don’t want anyone to feel unsafe getting to a place of exercise,” Professor Sutton said.
Premier Daniel Andrews’s office confirmed later on Wednesday afternoon the rule would be scrapped, with the Chief Health Officer’s directions to be amended accordingly.
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Staff writers 2.48pm: Ardern ‘encouraged’ as NZ records six cases
Jacinda Ardern says today’s reported numbers of six new cases in New Zealand are “encouraging.’’
Of the six cases, one is in managed isolation.
The other five cases are in the community, all linked to the South Auckland cluster, while 23,038 tests were processed yesterday.
There was “no intention to move to level 4, and no need to” based on test results so far, the New Zealand Prime Minister said.
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Rachel Baxendale 1.54pm: Isolation breaches: In the shower, in the shed
Only 26 of 800 people Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews criticised earlier this month for not being home isolating when Australian Defence Force and health department personnel came knocking have been deemed worthy of fines by Victoria Police.
Police on Wednesday revealed they have only issued a total of 42 fines to people who have failed to isolate after testing positive to coronavirus or being a close contact, 16 of which have been issued since Mr Andrews announced a crackdown on August 4 because 800 people who were required to isolate had not been home when ADF and Department of Health and Human Services staff conducted 3000 doorknocks.
In a statement released on Wednesday, police said the most common reasons people had “not been home” were incorrect or outdated addresses, or leaving home for permitted reasons under the Chief Health Officer’s directives.
This included leaving home to exercise, which was explicitly allowed for positive cases until August 4, when the Andrews government decided to remove the exemption, following questions from The Australian the previous week.
“Victoria Police receives details from DHHS on a daily basis of people who have tested positive to coronavirus or are deemed a close contact,” police said in a statement released on Wednesday.
“This information is then used by Operation Sentinel to conduct follow-up spot checks via a combination of door knocks and geo-located phone calls.”
Police said they had received the details of more than 30,000 people to check on since April.
“The majority of people were found to be isolating as required when police performed spot checks,” police said.
“The two most common reasons why people may have been classified as not being home originally was because incorrect or outdated address details were provided or they had left their home for a permitted reason under the Chief Health Officer’s directives.
“This includes seeking medical attention or exercising which was permitted under the Chief Health Officer’s directives at the time many of these doorknocks took place.
Deputy Commissioner Rick Nugent said there were a variety of innocent reasons people did not answer when doorknocked by authorities.
“Some of them were in a shower when [we] knocked on the door,” he said.
“Some of them were in the shed in the back building something.”
“So they’re not all out necessarily of their home.”
Teams of ADF personnel and Victorian health workers door knock coronavirus positive cases as well as their close contacts if they do not answer telephone calls.
Mr Nugent said geolocation data from an individual’s phones was also used to confirm they were not self-isolating at home.
He said the majority of people were doing the right thing despite some exceptions.
“There are idiots, there is poor behaviour, there are deliberate blatant breaches,” he said.
“So that certainly occurs.”
“To date, 42 fines have been issued to people failing to self-isolate.
“This includes 26 people who were fined $1652 and 16 people who were fined $4957”, police said, meaning only 26 of the 800 people Mr Andrews said were not home as of August 4 were issued with fines.
“The main reason people left their home was to go to the shops or for a walk, with some people claiming they were unaware they had to self-isolate despite testing positive to coronavirus,” police said.
“It should be noted the people fined $1652 were detected prior to the introduction of the $4957 fine on 4 August 2020.
“Victoria Police will continue to perform regular spot checks and has no hesitation in issuing fines to anyone found not self-isolating.”
On August 4, Mr Andrews announced a new $4957 fine for people with coronavirus or their close contacts who breached the requirement to isolate for a second time, saying the measure was needed after ADF and DHHS teams found 800 of 3000 people they doorknocked were not home.
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Agencies 1.50pm: Serena gifted rails run to Court’s record
A depleted US Open field will provide Serena Williams with a golden opportunity as she seeks a 24th career Grand Slam title to match Australian Margaret Court’s all-time record.
READ the full story here
Remy Varga 1.38pm: Andrews: I never disputed ADF availability
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews says he’s never disputed ADF troops were available to assist with hotel quarantine, only that they weren’t offered during meetings with Emergency Management Victoria in March.
It follows testimony given by Lieutenant-General John Frewen on Tuesday that the ADF put 100 troops on standby to help establish the hotel quarantine system.
Pointing to a statement issued by EMV Commissioner Andrew Crisp on August 12, Mr Andrews said the key word was “offer”.
“No one’s ever questioned [whether] there were additional ADF troops or ADF personnel and decisions were made by the ADF,” he said.
“If you read Andrew Crisp’s statement … have a look at the fine detail, then that I think deals with the issue around offers and requests. That’s the point of contention, not whether there was a decision made by the Australian Defence Force.”
Mr Crisp’s statement confirmed the ADF were involved in discussions on hotel quarantine on March 28 and March 28.
“During these discussions I did not seek nor did representatives of the ADF offer assistance as part of the hotel quarantine program,” he said.
“Subsequent communications with the ADF on the 12th and 15th of April did not relate to ADF assistance as part of the program.”
Lieutenant-general Frewen said on Tuesday 100 troops were put on standby to help Victoria after Prime Minister Scott Morrison offered all state and territories with ADF support in quarantine efforts.
‘‘In the PM’s offer, the ADF, it was made plain, would be available to all of the states and territories to help with whatever arrangements were put in place for quarantine and quarantine enforcement,” he said.
Mr Andrews triggered a stoush between himself and the Commonwealth when he told a parliamentary hearing that it was incorrect to say there were hundreds of ADF troops on offer to assist with hotel quarantine.
Defence Minister Linda Reynolds responded by saying Victoria had been offered help on multiple occasions but Mr Andrews has disputed the help related to hotel quarantine.
READ MORE: ADF support ‘offered from the beginning’
Imogen Reid 1.34pm: Preschool relief funding extended in NSW
The NSW government has announced it will extend relief funding for free preschools until the end of term four.
The state’s Education Minister Sarah Mitchell said the extension will help families keep their children in attendance during this “critical” year of early education.
The COVID-19 relief funding for community and mobile preschools is extended to the end of Term 4.
— NSW Dept of Education (@NSWEducation) August 19, 2020
Read more on: https://t.co/fAkGCkrRii pic.twitter.com/Uv3iR2NRhR
“COVID-19 has already caused disruption to all of our lives, so it’s more important than ever to ensure families are supported to keep children in quality education and care,” she said.
NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet said the funding would ensure preschools can stay open and early education teachers can continue to provide their service.
“Eligible services can opt in for the relief funding to allow them to provide fee relief and maintain staffing levels,” he said.
“Services will be contacted directly with information on how to opt in and access payments for Term 4.”
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Imogen Reid 1.27pm: Outbreak at Melbourne hospital sparks concerns
An outbreak at a Melbourne Hospital which has infected around 50 staff members has sparked a fresh wave of concern over the medical facilities ability to handle the cluster.
Victoria’s Chief Medical Officer Professor Brett Sutton said he expected the outbreak at Frankston Hospital in Melbourne’s southeast would grow.
“There is a significant opportunity for transmission to occur,” he said.”
“We clearly need to work at patient and staff infection [and] staff to staff transmission.”
Professor Sutton said there would be “a lot of furloughed staff” but said trained staff will replace any absent healthcare workers.
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Rachel Baxendale 1.23pm: Gone Fishing: Man fined over restriction breach
A man who travelled from Melbourne to Geelong to go fishing is among 154 people fined by Victoria Police in the 24 hours to Wednesday for breaching coronavirus restrictions.
The fines issued included 19 $200 fines for failing to wear a face covering, and 35 $1652 fines for breaching the state’s 8pm to 5am curfew.
There were also 18,216 vehicles checked at the vehicle checkpoints where 17 fines were issued, as well as 3396 spot checks on people at homes, businesses and public places, with 297,772 spot checks conducted by Victoria since March 21.
Examples of people fined in the last 24 hours include:
– A woman seen walking on Spencer Street without a mask. Police say she said she “had been smoking when a bird swooped her associate’s hamburger, and (she) had been therefore distracted, and was about to resume smoking.” Smoking and eating are considered legitimate reasons for taking a face covering off in public under the Chief Health Officer’s orders.
– A man who travelled from Melbourne to Geelong to go fishing.
– A man and woman from Darebin, in Melbourne’s inner northeast, who do not live at the same residence, driving together outside of curfew hours to withdraw money from an ATM.
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Rachel Baxendale 1.06pm: Aged care cases continue to rise in Victoria
Active cases in aged care and health settings have continued to rise in Victoria in the 24 hours to Wednesday, despite an overall fall in case numbers in the state.
The number of active cases linked to aged care facilities rose by 26 between Tuesday and Wednesday to 2050.
The number of active cases in health workers rose by 31 over the same period to 1065 active cases on Wednesday.
There have now been 3337 cases linked to Victorian aged care facilities since the pandemic began.
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said five of 2050 active cases in aged care facilities were linked to state-run homes, while the remaining 2045 were linked to private and not-for-profit facilities, which are regulated by the federal government.
There are 120 aged care facilities in Victoria currently with active cases.
In metropolitan Melbourne, where the vast majority of Victoria’s aged care coronavirus cases have been, the state owns 3.9 per cent of residential aged care services and 1.7% of aged care beds.
About 10 per cent of all aged care beds in Victoria are state-owned, but the majority of these are in regional areas.
Mr Andrews said there were 79 active cases linked to residential disability accommodation on Wednesday, down from 90 on Tuesday.
The Premier said 19 of these were in facilities recently transferred from the state government to the federally-run NDIS, while 60 were in facilities that are part of the NDIS.
He said there had only been one case, which is no longer active, linked to a state-run disability facility.
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Imogen Reid 12.52pm: New case in patient who attended hospital
NSW Health has reported a new case in a patient who attended Liverpool Hospital.
The case was confirmed since the daily reporting period ended.
Close contacts have been identified and advised to isolate for 14 days, get tested for COVID-19 and monitor for symptoms.
“Deep cleaning has occurred in areas where the outpatient received care and additional precautionary measures have been taken,” NSW Health said.
“This includes COVID-19 testing for staff who worked on the same wards the patient received care when they were infectious.
“Links to other cases are being investigated.”
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Remy Varga 12.47am: Vaccine proof ‘is in the pudding’
Victoria’s Chief Health Officer Professor Brett Sutton said the “proof is in the pudding” when asked about Scott Morrison’s vaccine announcement today.
“It’ll show itself if it works,” he said in reference to the Oxford vaccine’s stage-trials.
“And if it does work and its 80-90 per cent protective and that protection lasts for some months, then it will absolutely be a game changer.”
Mr Andrews said it was still early days in the development of the vaccine but described the Prime Minister’s announcement as “very good”.
“That’s exactly what we need to get us to not just a Covid normal, but if it’s a vaccine that has any sort of lifespan, then that’s going to change things a lot,” he said.
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Remy Varga 12.32pm: Andrews ‘won’t engage’ on aged care response debate
Daniel Andrews says he isn’t interested in engaging in debate about Scott Morrison’s comments that Victoria was responsible for the public health response to the state’s aged care outbreaks.
“The only attack that matters is our collective attack against that virus,” he said.
Mr Andrews said around 2000 shifts had been completed by hospital nurses at aged-care facilities to assist with the response to coronavirus outbreaks.
.@mjrowland68: Does the buck stop with you as Prime Minister for the litany of aged care failures?@ScottMorrisonMP: We regulate aged care, but when there is a public health pandemic ... then they are things that are managed from Victoria. pic.twitter.com/3yUUGRPjHC
— News Breakfast (@BreakfastNews) August 18, 2020
Mr Morrison told the ABC on Wednesday morning that the Commonwealth was responsible for regulating aged care but Victoria was responsible for the public health response.
“We regulate aged care but when there is a public health pandemic then public health — whether it gets into aged care, shopping centres or anywhere else — then those are things that are managed from Victoria,” he said.
“So I don’t think it’s as binary as you suggest.”
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Imogen Reid 12.06pm: Hopes vaccine available ‘early next year’
Scott Morrison says Australia will be playing an important role in supporting the leaders in the Pacific during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Prime Minister said the Australian government has had discussions with the his counterparts in Papua New Guinea and Fiji, pledging to “live up to” Australia’s responsibilities in the region.
“We have a regional role to play here as well as a domestic role to play here and we will be living up to all of those responsibilities as we progress,” Mr Morrison said.
“But today is a day of hope and Australia needs hope, the world needs hope, when it comes to this coronavirus.
“Should we be in a position for the [vaccine] trials to be successful, we would hope that this would be made available early next year.”
Mr Morrison said the new vaccine will need to satisfy every clinical standard before it will be made available in Australia.
“They won’t be any cutting corners, there won’t be undue haste. There will be the appropriate controls and protections put in place,” he said.
He said he wanted to see a vaccination rate of around 95 per cent across the country.
“This is the normal target range for when you’re having a vaccination program and we’ll be seeking to ensure that this is widely implemented with our partners around the country to ensure that should the vaccine be available that we have to move quickly, get it out across Australian and get Australia back to normal as quickly as we possibly can,” Mr Morrison said.
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Imogen Reid 11.50am: Fresh alert over Sydney market infection
NSW Health has updated an urgent alert after a person worked at a market in Sydney’s inner-west while infectious with COVID-19.
The person worked at Sydney Market Flemington during the following times:
– Sunday 9 August 8am to 4pm
– Tuesday 11 August 10.30pm to 6am on Wednesday 12 August
– Wednesday 12 August 10.30pm to 01:40am on Thursday 13 August
Anyone who attended during this period has been defined as a casual contact and is not required to self-isolate.
NSW reported seven new cases of COVID-19 in the 24 hours to 8pm on Sunday night, with five locally acquired.
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Richard Ferguson 11.30am: Vaccine voluntary, may become mandatory: PM
The take-up of any coronavirus vaccine will be voluntary at first, as Scott Morrison says he will consider making it as mandatory as possible.
Acting chief medical officer Paul Kelly said he expected “long queues” for the first voluntary take-up phase of a vaccine, but the government would consider mandatory steps after that.
“The first will be a voluntary call for people and I’m sure there will be long queues — socially distanced, of course — for this vaccine. It will be incredibly welcomed by many,” Professor Kelly said in Sydney.
“It will be the absolute ticket to get back to some sort of normal society and the things we all love and enjoy. I think there will be a strong take-up of the vaccine.
“There will be some who, for medical reasons, as the PM said, may not be able to take the vaccine, but there will be very strong campaigns to encourage people.
“And we’ve had experience before of linking vaccination with other programs and all of those things will be looked at over time.”
The Prime Minister repeated he would consider mandatory steps to ensure take-up was above 90 per cent.
“I don’t think offering jelly beans will be the way to do that as you do with kids,” Mr Morrison said in Sydney.
“We’ll take it one step at a time but we’ll take those issues as they present and consider what steps are necessary at that time.”
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Remy Varga 11.23am: Victoria’s numbers are stabilising: Sutton
Victoria’s Chief Health Brett Sutton has welcomed Victoria’s 216 new cases on Wednesday, saying it appeared numbers were stabilising with transmission trending down.
“We shouldn’t underestimate the challenges of a second wave, relatively speaking Victoria has done pretty well globally,” he said.
Professor Sutton said there were only four new outbreaks on Monday, which he said was a positive sign.
“Trending in the right direction but I would like to see a day of zero new outbreaks and very little community transmission,” he said.
Professor Sutton said the stage-four lockdown in place in metropolitan Melbourne and Mitchell Shire isn’t expected to go into October.
“Stage four isn’t expected to go into October but we’re not there yet,” he said.
Victoria’s 216 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday have brought the state’s total number of cases since the pandemic began to 17,446.
The 12 deaths in the 24 hours to Wednesday bring the state’s death toll to 363.
This includes three men in their 70s, four women and one man in their 80s, and three women and one man in their 90s.
There are 675 people in Victorian hospitals with coronavirus, including 45 in intensive care, of whom 29 are on ventilators.
This compares with 665 people in hospital with the virus on Tuesday, including 45 in intensive care, of whom 32 were on ventilators.
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews says all 12 deaths announced on Wednesday were linked to aged-care outbreaks.
He said there were 2050 active cases across the troubled sector.
The number of cases where Victorian contact tracers have been unable to establish a link to another infection has risen to 3751, up 82 since Tuesday.
This does not include 1067 cases which remained under investigation on Tuesday, as well as the proportion of Wednesday’s 216 new cases which are yet to be linked to known outbreaks.
The state’s number of active cases has fallen to 7155, down from a peak of 7880 on August 11, and down 119 since Tuesday.
Mr Andrews said WorkSafe Victoria had issued 62 notices to improve after the state workplace authority began inspecting business precautions against COVID-19.
“Some of those might have been quite minor matters,” he said.
— With Rachel Baxendale
Yoni Bashan 11.14am: NSW records seven new virus cases
NSW has recorded seven new cases of COVID-19 overnight, with Premier Gladys Berejiklian urging the state’s residents, especially those in the west and southwest of Sydney, to remain vigilant for unsourced transmission of the virus.
“We have around 15 or 16 cases that we’ve experienced in the last six weeks that don’t have a confirmed source,” Ms Berejiklian said, adding these cases were linked by the one strain of the virus.
NSW chief health officer Dr Kerry Chant said roughly one or two cases without a source were emerging each day in the west and southwest of Sydney.
Of the seven cases recorded in the 24 hours to 8pm on Tuesday, two were in returned travellers — one from overseas, the other from Victoria — and the remaining five cases were locally acquired.
Ms Berejiklian said investigations into the transmission of COVID-19 from a returned traveller to a security guard at Sydney’s Marriott Hotel were ongoing.
“There is no evidence to suggest this person did the wrong thing at all,” Ms Berejiklian said. “But we do have to accept there are jobs in the community that are higher risk. I’m just relieved that after all this time … this is the first case (of transmission in a hotel quarantine setting).”
Dr Chant said CCTV footage had been reviewed by police at the hotel and there was no obvious explanation to how the security guard contracted the virus.
Investigations were now focusing on the movement of two travellers out of the hotel, and whether that somehow led to transmission, or whether the guard contracted the virus from an “intermediary” linked to the traveller.
“The security guard has been incredibly cooperative. There is no overt contact that we can demonstrate (between him and the traveller) … there’s nothing that gives us an easy explanation as to how transmission occurred,” she said.
NSW Police Deputy Commissioner Gary Worboys said the guard worked on the same floor as the traveller, however there was no evidence of any inappropriate conduct.
Both Dr Chant and Ms Berejiklian said that while the hotel quarantine leakage was concerning, the circulation of the virus in west and southwestern Sydney gave them more cause for alarm.
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Charlie Peel 9.53am: Returned traveller adds one new case for Queensland
Queensland has recorded one new case of COVID-19 overnight after a man in hotel quarantine tested positive to the virus.
The man was in his seventh day of quarantine after returning to Brisbane from Papua New Guinea.
Premier @Annastaciamp with the latest coronavirus update for Queensland. #7NEWS https://t.co/TDyiPpIfBm
— 7NEWS Brisbane (@7NewsBrisbane) August 18, 2020
The state has relaxed some of its restrictions in towns close to the border, including around Goondiwindi, 350km southwest of Brisbane, after a request from mayor Lawrence Springborg.
“These are for a small number of people and it’s just to make that movement between those border communities a little bit easier,” Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said.
The premier said the Queensland border would remain closed until there was no community transmission in New South Wales and Victoria.
She said it was likely that could remain the case in Victoria until at least Christmas.
“We will have strong restrictions in place in Queensland while there is community transmission in NSW and Victoria,” Ms Palaszczuk said.
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Jared Lynch 9.25am: CSL expects vaccine in ‘near future’
Australia’s biggest company CSL is optimistic an effective vaccine and treatment for COVID-19 will be developed “in the near future”, as it steps up its efforts to quash the pandemic.
READ the full story here
Richard Ferguson 9.13am: Vaccine should be mandatory: Morrison
Scott Morrison wants any future coronavirus vaccine to be as mandatory as possible.
The Morrison government has locked in a guarantee for the Australia-wide supply of the world’s first potential COVID-19 vaccine, under a deal signed with Britain-based drug giant AstraZeneca.
The Prime Minister on Monday said the only reason any Australian should not get the vaccine is if they have a medical exemption.
Watch the full interview with @ScottMorrisonMP this morning, discussing:
— News Breakfast (@BreakfastNews) August 18, 2020
-The new COVID vaccine deal
-State border closures
-Aged care
-The spat with China over wine pic.twitter.com/QydGE85VwZ
“We’ve got to get to 95 per cent … I would make it as mandatory as you could possibly make it,” he told Melbourne’s 3AW radio.
“There are always exemptions for any vaccine on medical grounds, but should be the only basis.
“We’re talking about a pandemic which has destroyed the global economy and taking the lives of hundreds of thousands of people around the world, and 430 Australians here.”
“The government hasn’t made a decision … I was the minister that established No Jab, No Play. My position is pretty clear on this and not for turning.”
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Rachel Baxendale 8.55am: Victoria records 216 cases, 12 deaths
Victoria has confirmed 216 new cases of coronavirus in the 24 hours to Wednesday.
Sadly, 12 more people in the state have lost their lives to the virus in that time.
#Covid19VicData for 19 August 2020.There are 216 new cases of #coronavirus (#COVID19) detected in Victoria in the last 24 hours, and 12 deaths reported. We are sending condolences to their families.
— VicGovDHHS (@VicGovDHHS) August 18, 2020
Further information will be available later today. pic.twitter.com/zEMVHRhdoM
The 12 new deaths bring the state’s death toll to 363 – all but 20 of which have occurred since July 4.
There have been 250 deaths so far in August alone.
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Imogen Reid 8.25am: Australia ‘at front of pack’ for vaccine: PM
Scott Morrison says Australia is at “the front of the pack” after securing a promising coronavirus vaccine being developed at Oxford University.
“This is one of the most promising, most advanced vaccine developments anywhere in the world and we have been working on this for some time,” the Prime Minister said.
“But it won’t be the only one which we can get involved with. There’s about 106 different projects around the world and Professor Brendan Murphy is working with a team of experts to identify and work through the other promising options.”
Mr Morrison vowed every Australian would gain early access to the drug if the trials are successful.
The agreement with pharma-giant AstraZeneca would see the vaccine likely manufactured in Australia by Melbourne-based biotech business CSL.
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Staff writers 8.12am: Victorian tracing team half the size of NSW
Victoria’s coronavirus contact tracing team is reportedly about half the size of NSW despite having almost 28 times the number of active cases.
Victoria is believed to have a team of about 150 people on the phones searching for close contacts while NSW has about 300, Nine News has revealed.
The state government told the broadcaster it had a tracing team of about 2600 but refused to say how many were actually making calls.
Premier Daniel Andrews said on Tuesday there were 3669 “mystery cases” in Victoria where authorities had no idea how the patients contracted the virus.
Despite having 30 times the number of cases of NSW, it's been revealed Victoria only has half the number of contact tracers - and many say the system is broken. @jekearsley #AusPol #9News pic.twitter.com/fbXfbRT7uS
— Nine News Sydney (@9NewsSyd) August 18, 2020
Victoria’s contact tracing team has struggled to cope with surging cases during the state’s second wave, which has led to long delays in contacting some positive cases and their close contacts, with some people thought to be close contacts not contacted at all.
In early July more than 200 Ambulance Victoria staff made up of third-year student paramedics and graduates were deployed to help bolster the contact tracing team, with Mr Andrews telling reporters “every government agency” would be helping Department of Health and Human Services in some way.
At least 28 teams of Australian Defence Force personnel and DHHS authorised officers have also been deployed to doorknock every positive case since the start of August to ensure people are isolating and provide them support.
As of Tuesday, Victoria had 7274 active cases and NSW 261.
Mr Andrews said mystery cases had jumped 43 since Monday and urged Victorians to keep coming forward and getting tested.
But the state’s chief health officer Professor Brett Sutton predicted Victoria’s daily numbers of new infections would drop next week and forecast cases to be in the 100s. — NCA Newswire
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Imogen Reid 7.58am: Tracing the difference between NSW, Victoria: PM
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has again declined calls to “discipline” Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews, declaring it is not his job during the pandemic to focus on politics.
Responding to Today’s host Karl Stefanovic, who asked how the Prime Minister had not “personally lost patience with Daniel Andrews,” Mr Morrison said: “My job is to keep focused on the challenge that I have to protect Australians every single day.”
“I am a very singularly-minded focused person as you know when it comes to dealing with challenges and that’s where Australians need focus, not on politics,” he said.
The Prime Minister’s response came after Stefanovic expressed exasperation that Mr Andrews did not take states up on their offer to help Victoria in their contact tracing effort.
Mr Morrison said while the tracing facilities in NSW were outstanding, he added there have been several issues with Victoria’s ability to identify case contacts.
“The tracing facilities in NSW have been industrial in scale,” Mr Morrison said.
“I think they have been a key reason as to why here in NSW the results under similar pressures with outbreaks have been very different, but others will get into those differences about tracing capabilities.
“NSW in Victoria was offering support for tracing, as was South Australia and many other states.
“So what we were seeking to do was harness the resources of the entire country to support what was happening in Victoria.”
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Glenda Korporaal 7.54am: China denies wine probe is political
China has rejected suggestions that its anti-dumping probe into Australia’s $1 billion-plus wine export market is political.
READ the full story here
Greg Brown 7.51am: Call for travel, trade pact with UK, NZ, Canada
Liberal Senator James Paterson has called for Australia to work towards striking a freedom of movement agreement with Britain, New Zealand and Canada, making it easier for citizens in each commonwealth nation to live and work abroad.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has fanned the flames of geopolitical tensions and highlighted the important distinction between trading partners and long-term friends and allies,’’ Senator Paterson wrote in an essay for Neo-Liberal think tank Adam Smith Institute.
“Australia should trade with everyone, but to safeguard our freedom and prosperity we must strengthen our economic relationships with countries that share our values.’’
READ the full essay here
Imogen Reid 7.30am: Elite private schools cancel all sport
Elite private school associations in NSW have cancelled all sporting events, including the prestigious opening round of first XV rugby matches scheduled to start this weekend.
The Athletic Association for the Great Public Schools of NSW, also known as GPS, announced that competitions will be suspended on Tuesday upon the recommendation of NSW health officials after coronavirus guidelines were tightened for schools across the state.
GPS schools include Riverview, The Kings School, Shore School, Newington College, Sydney Boys High School, The Armidale School and Sydney Grammar.
Member schools met yesterday and agreed that the winter competition would be suspended immediately.
The Associated Schools of NSW (CAS) has also cancelled the winter fixture, which includes St. Aloysius’ College, Barker College, Cranbrook School, Knox Grammar School, Trinity Grammar School and Waverley College.
A no-spectator policy had already been implemented before the competitions were cancelled.
It comes after NSW Health told community sporting organisations they can no longer compete against teams in different regions and must cancel competitions from Wednesday.
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Imogen Reid 7.00am: Warnings over Sydney restaurant supercluster
NSW Health officials have confirmed two of Sydney’s coronavirus clusters are one supercluster after the outbreaks were found to be genomically linked.
The city’s two Thai Rock restaurants share a close genomic pattern leading health authorities to link the two clusters together, despite being more than 34 kilometres apart, the Sydney Morning Herald reports.
Combined, the clusters between the Wetherill Park restaurant and the Potts Point venue account for 153 COVID-19 cases.
NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant suggested there could be a link between the two restaurant outbreaks several weeks ago but said she was waiting for test results to finalise the findings.
How the virus spread between the two eateries is still unknown.
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Imogen Reid 6.55am: WHO: Vaccine nationalism will worsen pandemic
The number of confirmed cases of global COVID-19 cases is fast approaching 22 million, with 21.97 million cases confirmed on Wednesday and the global death toll rising to 776,154.
It comes as the World Health Organisation (WHO) said the levels of immunity around the world are “nowhere near” where they need to be to stop the transmission of the coronavirus.
WHO Health Emergencies Executive Director Mike Ryan said the international community needed to “focus on what we can actually do now to suppress transmission.”
He also warned against relying on the herd immunity strategy, saying it was “not a solution we should be looking into.”
During the same conference in Geneva, WHO Chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus blasted “vaccine nationalism”, saying nations that hoard potential COVID-19 vaccines will only worsen the pandemic.
“We need to prevent vaccine nationalism” Mr Ghebreyesus said.
“Sharing finite supplies strategically and globally is actually in each country’s national interest.”
The WHO has an August 31 deadline for nations to join the “COVAX Global Vaccine Facility” for sharing possible vaccines with developing countries. WHO’s 194 member states have been asked to join.
The world health agency also raised concerns that the spread of the virus was being predominantly driven by younger people who are unaware they are infected, posing a danger to vulnerable members of society.
“People in their 20s, 30s and 40s are increasingly driving the spread,” WHO regional Director Takeshi Kasai said.
Meanwhile Ireland has tightened restrictions following a surge in cases over the last three weeks, which increased by further 190 on Tuesday.
The spike has taken Ireland’s growth rate of cases to the fourth highest in Europe. Under the new rules, only six visitors are allowed in a home, outdoor gatherings are restricted to 15, down from 200, while fans are banned from attending sporting events.
France is preparing to make face masks mandatory in the workplace, including meeting rooms, corridors, change rooms and open-plan offices.
Face masks are already compulsory on public transport and in enclosed shared public spaces.
South Africa will launch on Wednesday clinical trials of a US-developed coronavirus vaccine with 2,900 volunteers.
The vaccine, known as NVX-CoV2373, was developed by US biotech company Novavax from genetic sequencing.
With more than 580,000 cases and around 11,900 deaths, South Africa is the fifth country in the world with the most infections.
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Yoni Bashan 6.20am: No sack for Ruby Princess failures
The four members of a NSW Health expert panel found to have committed “serious” and “inexcusable” failures in their assessment of the Ruby Princess cruise ship will keep their jobs without incurring any disciplinary action, despite the outcomes of an inquiry laying the blame for the public health emergency with their decision-making.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian vowed on Monday to implement the shortlist of recommendations handed down by a special commission of inquiry into the cruise ship disaster, saying these would be enacted as a priority by a designated official.
She also apologised unreservedly for the catastrophic events.
The Australian has learned that no changes will be made to the expert panel process and no disciplinary action will be taken against the four physicians who were ultimately blamed for the “serious failures” resulting in the ship being designated a “low risk” for COVID-19.
READ the full story here.
Yoni Bashan 6.00am: Probe into Sydney hotel breach
Police and health officials have launched an urgent investigation to establish how a security contractor at a Sydney hotel contracted COVID-19 from a quarantined guest, prompting fears of a Melbourne-style breach that could have spread the virus across the city.
The security contractor worked at several locations while infectious, including Sydney Markets at Flemington and Parramatta Local Court, although officials said as of Tuesday there had been no new cases of the virus to emerge.
Genomic testing was used to link the man’s strain of COVID-19 to that of a traveller, who had been put into mandatory quarantine at the Sydney Harbour Marriott Hotel at Circular Quay on July 31 upon their return from the US.
They were tested for the virus on August 2 as part of routine protocols, then again on August 4 when they returned a positive result. Health officials said they were then transferred to an alternative hotel on August 5 for further management.
READ the full story here.
Simon Benson 5.45am: Vaccine free for ‘every single Australian’
The Morrison government has locked in a guarantee for the Australia-wide supply of the world’s first potential COVID-19 vaccine, under a deal signed with Britain-based drug giant AstraZeneca.
Scott Morrison has pledged that “every single Australian” would be offered the vaccine for free, if and when the Oxford University trial proved successful, which could be as early as the end of this year or early next year.
The agreement, which would ensure the vaccine was manufactured in Australia, is part of a multibillion-dollar federal vaccine and treatment strategy, to be released on Wednesday and overseen by Health Department secretary Brendan Murphy, who has led the country’s pandemic response.
The candidate vaccine is in its stage three trial phase and is widely believed to show the most promise for an effective vaccine against the virus.
The Prime Minister said the agreement would mean that Australians would be poised to become the first people in the world to have access to a vaccine if the Oxford trials passed muster and went to market.
He cautioned that more work was needed to assess whether the drug was viable and safe, and said the government would work up a portfolio of potential vaccines among the 167 under trial worldwide.
READ the full story here
Remy Varga 5.45am: Family of four linked to thousands of cases
A family of four allowed outside their Rydges Hotel room for walks has been identified as the source of almost all the second-wave COVID-19 cases in Melbourne, an outbreak that has infected thousands and left the city in lockdown.
Within a week of the family’s arrival at the hotel on May 15, two security guards and an employee had contracted the coronavirus — before it spread to 17 people who worked in the building or were close contacts of those who did.
Across town, a man and a couple who returned to Australia on June 1 and June 11 respectively were identified as the source of a smaller infection that was quickly linked to 46 people before spreading across Melbourne, the Victorian hotel quarantine inquiry heard on Tuesday.
The inquiry, chaired by former Family Court judge Jennifer Coate, was told the Victorian government knew of the links back to guests and staff at the Rydges on May 30, with the Doherty Institute giving weekly genomic updates to the Department of Health and Human Services.
READ the full story here.
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