THE AMA has called for the release of the health advice given to National Cabinet after the Prime Minister Albanese announced changes to Covid-19 settings yesterday.
After the National Cabinet met Mr Albanese said acting chief medical officer Michael Kidd provided an update on the pandemic and outlined strategies for combating potential Covid-19 waves.
But in his statement Mr Albanese did not provide any detail about Professor Kidd’s advice.
He said the National Cabinet agreed to reduce the isolation periods for Covid-19 positive cases (with no symptoms at five days) from seven to five following a positive test.
Seven days isolation remains for workers in high-risk settings including aged care, disability care and those providing care in the home.
AMA president Steve Robson said the health advice needed to be made public as the decision would mean many people re-entering the community after five days’ isolation would potentially still be infectious and pass the virus on.
Professor Robson said as many as 30 per cent of people were likely to still be infectious on days six and seven – even longer.
“When isolation rules change we need clear plans for protecting the vulnerable and careful monitoring and if case numbers climb then the isolation rules should be re-evaluated,’’ he said.
“It’s now increasingly important people take protective measures including getting tested if you develop Covid symptoms and remain in isolation while awaiting the results.
“Additionally, everyone should be taking up the vaccine booster shots they’re eligible for and wear a mask wherever possible indoors when around other people.
“We also need to keep appropriate distances from people in indoor setting and continue hand sanitising and good hygiene practices.
“The move from seven to five days isolation will mean it is more important than ever for governments to ensure plans are in place to monitor and respond to outbreaks to protect Australians in vulnerable settings – such as those in aged care facilities.’’
On Tuesday, the AMA (WA) said there was a new variant of interest in India that was emerging, which needed to be observed and assessed.
AMA (WA) president Mark Duncan-Smith said just because the USA had been using five days isolation did not mean Australia needed to run headfirst into the same health and workforce disaster.
Dr Duncan-Smith said medical evidence was not the only factor in decision making but putting people back to work at day five when half of them were still infective would be counter-productive at a human resources and economic level.
“Based on a recent published study, as half of patients still are infective at five days or later with Omicron, reducing isolation from seven to five days will be counterproductive in the short and long term, and would be premature at this stage, particularly given the likelihood of a further wave later in the year,’’ he said.
The changes agreed to by National Cabinet will come into effect from Friday, September 9, with the pandemic leave disaster payment (PLDP) eligibility to reflect the changed isolation periods, effective the same date.
National Cabinet also agreed to remove the mandatory wearing of masks on domestic flights, which will also come into effect from September 9.
The World Health Organization latest update on September 1 says 599.8 million confirmed cases of Covid-19 and 6.46 million confirmed deaths.
