Services impacted as Covid spike continues

The Director of Public Health has indicated when Tasmania could return to greater sense of normalcy, as the state’s public health emergency declaration is once again extended. DETAILS >>

The Director of Public Health has indicated when Tasmania could return to greater sense of normalcy, as the state’s public health emergency declaration is once again extended.

The declaration has been extended for eight weeks as Tasmania continues to experience a high number of daily cases.

Public health director Mark Veitch said the declaration was being renewed for a shorter period for the first time since its initial declaration.

“While the per capita incidence of notified cases of COVID-19 in Tasmania is currently high, our prevalence of COVID-19 hospitalisations has been low,” Mr Veitch said.

“Our high vaccination rates have significantly reduced the risk of severe outcomes of COVID-19, particularly among those at higher risk of hospitalisation, admission to intensive care, and death.

Mr Veitch said the current wave of infection was expected to decline later in April.

“I expect that in the coming months it will be appropriate for the clinical and public health management of Covid-19 to shift to approaches suitable for a common notifiable acute respiratory infection,” Dr Veitch said.

Covid update

“Measures to address Covid-19 will continue to aim to address the clinical and public health risks from the virus, while minimising the risk of social and economic harms.

“Responses need to be sufficient and proportionate to manage risks from Covid-19 when community transmission and impacts are low, and when cases increase or when new variants emerge.”

Dr Veitch said a decision could be made to end the declaration sooner than expected, but it could also be extended.

The eight week period began as of Tuesday.

Meanwhile in the 24 hours to 8pm on Monday, Tasmania recorded 2437 new cases, an increase of around 700 upon the previous reporting period.

44 people are in hospital, with 18 being treated specifically for Covid and 26 Covid positive patients being treated for unrelated medical conditions.

Tasmania is less than 1000 cases away from recording 100,000 cases in Tasmania since the pandemic began.

When close contact rules could be scrapped

The state government has revealed it would consider easing close contact restrictions in the next month after the Tasmanian Small Business Council and Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry called for the quarantine requirements to be eased.

Director of Public Health, Dr Mark Veitch, claimed it would be too much of a risk to lift the restriction now amid a surge in Covid cases.

“The experience of a number of countries overseas that have dropped quarantine has seen quite steep spikes in case numbers and some of the other mainland Australian states have done some modelling that suggests the consequences of the premature dropping of quarantine requirements could make things worse rather than better.”

“We’ve had a fairly prolonged surge of the BA.2 strain but it’s likely that will begin to ease during April so the appropriate time to think about whether we replace contact management by quarantine with contact management by other measures such as RATS and the like is probably later in April.”

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The Tasmanian Small Business Council and Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry proposed a blanket rule that would see employees show up to the job unless testing positive on a RAT test.

TCCI CEO, Michael Bailey said the impact of the current policy was seeing businesses suffer and workers out of pocket needlessly.

“Tasmania has one of the highest vaccination rates in the world and while the Covid infection rate is high, hospitalisations and those in ICU are low, so it is time to more forward,” Mr Bailey said.

Robert Mallett from the small business council of Tasmania. Picture: LUKE BOWDEN

The call comes as the state recorded another 2,108 cases on Friday, bringing the total number of active cases across Tasmania to 12,883.

30 people are in hospital with Covid while only 12 are being treated specifically for the virus.

As more than 100 schools across the state battle outbreaks, Labor’s education minister Josh Willie demanded the state government outline an updated Covid school plan heading into winter.

“I’m calling on education minister Roger Jaensch to outline the plan for education in winter.” said Mr Willie.

Labor party MLC Josh Willie.

“Is it their plan to keep windows open in the cold weather? Is their plan to have students learning outside in the cold winter?”

“Our education results already lag the nation. And if the government does not manage this issue, well, through winter, our students will fall further behind.”

State Health Commander Kathrine Morgan-Wicks said clinics have now opened their doors to vulnerable and older Tasmanians to receive their fourth dose of the vaccine.

“They’re keen to get their winter dose before we head into that typical respiratory illness season.”

Services impacted as Covid spike continues

Tasmania experienced a third straight day of record Covid cases on Thursday, as aged care homes and schools were affected by outbreaks and bus services continued to be disrupted.

The state recorded 2478 cases of the virus, the highest number since the beginning of the pandemic.

It follows a record-breaking day on Wednesday, when 2472 cases were confirmed.

The hospitalisation rate remains low, however, with just 29 people with the virus currently being treated in hospital and none in ICU.

Jeremy Rockliff deputy premier and minister for health. Tasmanian COVID update to announce that Tasmania will open up it's borders from December 15th. Picture: Nikki Davis-Jones

Health Minister Jeremy Rockliff acknowledged that the “elevated” case numbers were resulting in Metro bus services being cancelled due to drivers contracting Covid or being a close contact of a positive case.

The disruption – which saw more than 100 services cancelled across the state on Thursday alone – comes as free bus fares are being offered until the end of April to help ease cost of living pressures.

“We’re working as best we can to manage bus services under these circumstances and to ensure that the availability of public transport and our bus services are there for people when and where they need it,” Mr Rockliff said.

There are Covid outbreaks in eight residential aged care facilities across Tasmania – three in the south, four in the north, and one in the northwest.

“The teams at Public Health and across (the) Health (Department) are there to support the aged care facilities to ensure that services are maintained and the best available care provided,” Mr Rockliff said.

Meanwhile, 124 Tasmanian schools are in the midst of Covid outbreaks, including Hobart and Rosny colleges. 60 primary schools and five secondary schools are also included in the figure.

An outbreak is defined as five or more cases presenting in students and staff from a specific group within a single week.

State Health Commander Kathrine Morgan-Wicks said Tasmania’s public hospitals were experiencing “operational pressures” as a result of the number of Covid-positive patients and “high levels of Covid-related staff absences and high demand for non-Covid-related acute care”.

There are currently 89 active cases among staff in public health facilities in Tasmania’s south and 112 staff furloughed as close contacts; 42 active cases and 58 staff furloughed in northern facilities; and 32 active cases and 37 staff furloughed in northwest facilities.

“Staff are doing an incredible job continuing to provide critical health services to the community, with emergency surgery and elective surgeries continuing to proceed,” Ms Morgan-Wicks said.

Mr Rockliff said all four major hospitals were at Covid Escalation Level 2.

Covid is also impacting on sporting competitions, with up to six games being postponed in Football Tasmania leagues this weekend.

Furthermore, some Tasmanian State League club coaches are delaying team selection as long as possible, as they seek to field a healthy 22.

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