South Australia has recorded 1,471 new cases of COVID-19, but the number of people hospitalized remains at 36.
Important points:
- Pre-departure testing for all states has been abolished
- Only Category 1 and Urgent Category 2 elective surgeries are performed
- Booster shots will be mandatory for frontline medical personnel
Premier Steven Marshall says there are four or five people in intensive care, the exact number is due to be cleared this afternoon.
SA Pathology performed more than 22,000 tests yesterday, of which more than 1,700 were for people who were tested prior to traveling to Queensland.
Due to limitations in the testing system, Marshall says South Australia will no longer offer pre-departure PCR testing to states.
“We just have to dedicate all of the testing opportunities we have to people who have symptoms and who are in close contact,” he said.
Mr. Marshall also welcomed the Queensland Government’s decision to remove the requirement for pre-arrival PCR testing.
On Boxing Day, South Australia has removed pre-arrival PCR testing requirements for international travelers. instead, ask them to do a rapid antigen test.
New testing requirements have also been introduced for close and occasional contacts, with close contacts only required to get an initial PCR test and another before their quarantine period is complete.
Casual contacts only need to be tested if they develop symptoms.
Booster should become mandatory for health workers
The Prime Minister also indicated that frontline health workers and those who work with vulnerable people, such as those in care for the elderly and in facilities with disabilities, will soon be required to receive a booster vaccination.
“I spoke to the police commissioner this morning and he’s preparing that direction. It will be a requirement for people to get this refresher within two weeks of being admitted,” Marshall said.
“It is very important that we protect these frontline people as best we can because we need to get as much of our health workforce as possible.”
He added that it was a “big task” for the state to increase the double vaccination rate to over 90 percent and to distribute booster vaccinations in a timely manner.
“We have shortened the booster vaccination interval from six months to four months,” he said.
“Effective January 4th, many hundreds of thousands of additional South Australians will be eligible for this vaccination.”
In order to further relieve the health system, the premier also announced that elective surgeries in South Australia would be limited to category 1 and urgent category 2.
“This is so that the health resources previously devoted to elective surgery can focus on the very upcoming likely increase in hospital stays in our state,” he said.
National cabinet considering “standardizing” COVID measures
The prime minister called tomorrow’s cabinet meeting an opportunity for state prime ministers to discuss the possibility of a more unified approach to travel requirements.
“We will try to have standardized testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine protocols across the country,” he said.
“There are still some differences that create confusion.
“As we go through the different phases of this new variant of Omicron, we have to do more towards standardization as much as possible.”
Mr Marshall added that if Australia responded to the Omicron variant, states would receive a “very significant update” on the availability of rapid antigen tests and how to use them.
Spacebar to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrow keys to search, up and down arrow keys to volume.ConsiderDuration: 6 minutes 19 seconds6m How do you do a rapid antigen test?
What you need to know about the coronavirus:
Loading form …
