“We haven’t beaten it yet’ – complacency fears as Aussie virus cases dry up
Health officials are urging Australians not to become complacent about coronavirus as social and business restrictions are stripped away.
Australia has gone 24 hours without a single case of community transmission, while Victoria recorded its third straight ‘double donut’ day with no deaths or new infections, but Acting Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly warned the threat remained.
England has joined France and Germany in reintroducing nationwide lockdowns and the United States is recording 100,000 new infections each day.
“We haven’t beaten it yet,” Professor Kelly told ABC radio on Monday.
“We need to absolutely keep our eye on the ball. There is a global pandemic going on and those disturbing numbers from many of our friends overseas give us food for thought.”
Kelly said complacency was one of the major risks going forward.
“We need to remember this virus hasn’t gone away,” he said.
“There was and continues to be an increase in cases coming into our quarantine hotels.”
Victoria has recorded three straight days of no new coronavirus cases, its best numbers in five months.
Now all states and territories have brought coronavirus under control, Prime Minister Scott Morrison wants all internal borders reopened by Christmas.
“I’m very hopeful it will be reached and certainly the prime minister is very keen for that to happen,” Kelly said.
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“I’m sure all Australians are if it can be done safely, but those internal border measures are really decisions for the states.”
Meanwhile, Health Minister Greg Hunt says Australia is close to securing two more sources for a coronavirus vaccine, which he expects will start rolling out in 2021.
So far, the government has two coronavirus vaccine contracts in place.
One is with the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca and the other is with the University of Queensland and CSL.
“The results from both of those have actually been positive, more positive than we had expected,” Mr Hunt told reporters.
“We are now close to additional contracts and there are two further ones on the advice of the medical expert panel which are being pursued and which I am confident will be completed within the coming weeks if not earlier.”
He wants all Australians who are willing to be vaccinated to receive their jabs within the next 12 months.
Not a single locally-acquired case was detected from 14,751 tests in the 24 hours to 8pm on Saturday. One case was recorded after the deadline and will be counted in Monday’s tally.
It comes as Queensland prepares to open its border to everyone but those in Victoria and Greater Sydney from Tuesday.
The announcement by newly re-elected Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has drawn the ire of her NSW counterpart Gladys Berejiklian, who says Sydney is no longer a hotspot.
Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt is confident the case for a broader reopening is strengthening.
“We would encourage them to continue to review, and I am very hopeful that now that the election is over that this will continue to be a medical decision,” Mr Hunt said.
“If it is a medical decision, the very low case numbers, negligible case numbers – some days zero, some days less than a handful – will provide the strongest possible basis for moving to the next step.”
The latest locally-acquired case is the second child authorities believe acquired the virus at Flip Out Prestons Indoor Trampoline Park.
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The other child, who also attended the park at the same time as a known case, was diagnosed late on Thursday night.
Anyone who attended the park from 11am to 2pm on October 25 must get tested immediately and isolate for a full 14 days regardless of the result.
NSW Health is also urging anyone who attended a restaurant in Liverpool at the same time as an infected person to come forward, after details of some patrons weren’t logged.
Patrons who visited Jasmins Lebanese Restaurant in Liverpool on October 25 for at least an hour between 2pm and 3.30pm are considered close contacts.
Only one mystery case has been recorded in Victoria in the fortnight to October 30.
The state’s virus death toll remains at 819 and the national figure 907.
Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton predicts active cases will fall to a few dozen by next week.
Active cases ballooned above 7000 in mid-August as the state desperately tried to rein in its rampant second wave.
That figure has been whittled down to just 61 following consecutive days without recording a single new infection or death on Saturday and Sunday.
Professor Sutton expects active cases to tumble further, suggesting it could fall to “a couple of dozen” by next week.
“You’ll see 10 or more come off each day and we’ll get down to very few active cases,” he told reporters on Sunday.
Prof Sutton hinted another strong week of data could result in cap limits and density quotas for some industries being raised higher than initially outlined.
More restrictions are due to ease in Melbourne next Sunday, including the scrapping of the so-called “ring of steel” dividing the city from the regions and the 25km travel limit.
Although the encouraging case numbers won’t mean that date is brought forward, Prof Sutton said authorities would mull over changes that go beyond those previously announced.
“What allowances come on November 8 will absolutely be informed by what this week looks like,” he said.
“Some of the details might change. We can always make consideration of what caps might be in certain settings, what density quotients might be in those settings.
“And some of the specific industries that might come on board in terms of being able to operate.”
Ireland is leaning on the advice of Prof Sutton for its Melbourne-style lockdown, hoping to learn from the city’s success.
He cited the worsening situation in Europe as a reason for Victorians to reflect on their hard-won gains.
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