Sydney: Australia on Thursday narrows its definition of contact near Coronavirus cases and relaxing requirements for Covid-19 tests, because everyday cases reach 20,000 for the first time in a pandemic, in an effort to relieve pressure on the testing site.
Australia grappled with the rapid spread of Omicron Coronavirus variants after most states relieve difficult limits, and such as other countries, betting on a variant that highly transpaces far more severe than the previous variant.
The rules are being relaxed to stop people without symptoms forced into isolation, especially in health care, hospitality and airlines, and cut long queues of people who are forced to get PCR tests for travel between states or because they have been in public places with confirmed cases.
“With Omicron, we cannot have hundreds of thousands of Australians and more of the circulation based on the rules set for Delta variants,” Scott Morrisers prime minister told reporters.
Daily infections have increased from around 1,200 a month ago, when Omicron was first detected in Australia, up to 21.329 on Thursday.
From Friday, Morrison said “close contact” will be redefined as the person who lives in the same household with an infected person.
They must isolate for seven days and only have to get a PCR test if they have symptoms of Covid-19.
“If you are something other than close contact and you are not symptomatic, you don’t need to go and get a test,” Morrison said after a meeting of the National Cabinet.
The proposed rules mean that health officials will rely more on the fast antigen test at home, while PCR tests will be used for people with covid and vulnerable symptoms.
Even a record record of strain testing facilities, hospital numbers are lower than during the peak of delta waves.
“Omicron, less severe.
It becomes very clear now,” said Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly.
Of the more than 110,000 active cases, only around 120 people, or 0.11%, in intensive care, according to official data, are mostly in line with trends seen in countries with higher vaccination rates.
But Australian doctors have criticized the redefinition of close contact Morrison, said it would further accelerate the plague.
“(Omicron) Doesn’t care if you are a family member, coworkers, drinkers in the pub or breathe the same air in the elevator,” said Australian Medical Association President Omar Khorshid in a tweet.
Kelly dismissed criticism.
“We will have more cases.
There is no doubt about that.
This is a way to overcome the big tapes,” he told reporters.
Apart from the omicron wave, Australia’s calculation of nearly 363,000 infections and 2,225 deaths are much lower than many comparable countries.
Australia relaxes testing rules amid omicron surge
