Australian Reports of the Virus Spread

[SydneySwan]

Very glad i chose to holiday in my own state, so cant be locked out from my home.

Who at the start of 2020 ever imagined being locked out of their own home by their own government? Now WA and VIC residents face this daily reality and SA residents have in the past. Shame on those governments. The latest move by VIC against their own residents who happen to be in Greater Brisbane area over 1 COVID case is well beyond my comprehension.

All Victorian residents in QLD should renounce their Victorian citizenship. Queensland citizenship is available where they are or if they hop over the border into NSW they can take up Australian citizenship.

 

[Must...Fly!]

And a good decision. There’s no way that I plan to holiday out of state for at least the next six months, depending on the vax rollout.

That's nice.

And what about visiting family?

If I was to go to Perth to be with my family for a few days (when things are open), and then the Victorian government slams the door shut - I am stuck. I work in the delivery of an essential service (as defined by the government), and I can not work from home. What happens then?

I know - $2,500 - of my own money - in to hotel quarantine.

Who at the start of 2020 ever imagined being locked out of their own home by their own government? Now WA and VIC residents face this daily reality and SA residents have in the past. Shame on those governments. The latest move by VIC against their own residents who happen to be in Greater Brisbane area over 1 COVID case is well beyond my comprehension.

All Victorian residents in QLD should renounce their Victorian citizenship. Queensland citizenship is available where they are or if they hop over the border into NSW they can take up Australian citizenship.

Agreed. Also, you forgot to mention if you take up QLD citizenship you also gain access to QLD hospitals.

 

[HappyFlyerFamily]

That's nice.

And what about visiting family?

If I was to go to Perth to be with my family for a few days (when things are open), and then the Victorian government slams the door shut - I am stuck. I work in the delivery of an essential service (as defined by the government), and I can not work from home. What happens then?

I know - $2,500 - of my own money - in to hotel quarantine.


Agreed. Also, you forgot to mention if you take up QLD citizenship you also gain access to QLD hospitals.

My understanding is that the Victorian Government think they are being nice not charging for the mandatory 14 day State quarantine whenever it’s imposed (out of the blue or opposed to previous advice).

Too bad it’s costing Victorians financially in the need to find urgent accommodation when they are stuck on the other side of the border.

When the Vic Premier came home early from holidays in Qld, did the family return from holidays early as well?

 

[Pushka]

Who at the start of 2020 ever imagined being locked out of their own home by their own government? Now WA and VIC residents face this daily reality and SA residents have in the past. Shame on those governments. The latest move by VIC against their own residents who happen to be in Greater Brisbane area over 1 COVID case is well beyond my comprehension.

All Victorian residents in QLD should renounce their Victorian citizenship. Queensland citizenship is available where they are or if they hop over the border into NSW they can take up Australian citizenship.

Agree. Created stateless Australians and not a peep from the Feds. SA restrictions for their own citizens lasted months.

 

[Lynda2475]

No new community cases in Queensland so far

 

[Must...Fly!]

My understanding is that the Victorian Government think they are being nice not charging for the mandatory 14 day State quarantine whenever it’s imposed.

Well now you mention it, I do recall the Victorian state government saying they are still waiting on legislation to force interstate travelers to be charged. But I was sure they mentioned quarantine for those returning from NSW would be at their cost - so maybe that's been done? Or I am mixing up WA & VIC.

Either way...

 

[Pushka]

That's nice.

And what about visiting family?

If I was to go to Perth to be with my family for a few days (when things are open), and then the Victorian government slams the door shut - I am stuck. I work in the delivery of an essential service (as defined by the government), and I can not work from home. What happens then?

I know - $2,500 - of my own money - in to hotel quarantine.


Agreed. Also, you forgot to mention if you take up QLD citizenship you also gain access to QLD hospitals.

Well as you may remember families across the world are currently fractured. In UK people likewise can’t travel within the UK to visit family and that’s been the case in some areas since February last year and can’t see it improving until their Spring. Sadly not an issue for the respective Governments to sort out, across the world.

 

[HappyFlyerFamily]

No new community cases in Queensland so far

Good that the rumour of household transmission seems false.

 

[Must...Fly!]

So if people can secrete virus for up to 4 months post-illness (which is well known) but now anyone testing positive will not be released from quarantine...people could be stuck in a hotel for as long as they test positive, even if not infectious?

Post automatically merged: Jan 9, 2021

Well as you may remember families across the world are currently fractured. In UK people likewise can’t travel within the UK to visit family and that’s been the case in some areas since February last year and can’t see it improving until their Spring. Sadly not an issue for the respective Governments to sort out, across the world.

Yes that is sadly true. Though, happily for us, we live in Australia and therefore the UK rules (or any other) have no impact and little relevance.

 

[lovetravellingoz]

 

[oz_mark]

Someone with enough money is going to sue the Vic Gov and will most likely win... The couple held prisoner at a Melbourne Airport hotel are going to sue them and I expect some more people will try .

The DHHS are incompetent beyond belief.

As far as I can tell, the courts have pretty much sided with the governments (generally) at every turn so far.

Post automatically merged: Jan 9, 2021

Agree. Created stateless Australians and not a peep from the Feds. SA restrictions for their own citizens lasted months.

I think the feds have basically given up - the states will do what the states do, and no one has any power to stop them

 

[antycbr]

As far as I can tell, the courts have pretty much sided with the governments (generally) at every turn so far.

Don’t put it past the Victorian Government to stuff up the legal drafting of the orders...

 

[DC3]

And what about visiting family?

We have become very needy haven’t we? Not a patch on the fortitude of our grandparents.

 

[Must...Fly!]

As far as I can tell, the courts have pretty much sided with the governments (generally) at every turn so far.

Indeed, but the longer this goes on and the more knee-jerk the reactions seem to be - particularly with low case loads...it surely won't be long until a court challenge is mounted about deprivation of liberty, or other such legal claims (I am no lawyer...)

Post automatically merged: Jan 9, 2021

We have become very needy haven’t we? Not a patch on the fortitude of our grandparents.

I was until this very moment unaware that wanting to be with one's immediate family was being needy.

 

[Lynda2475]

SMH reports:

Woman with UK strain of virus travelled from Victoria to Queensland

A woman who tested positive to the UK strain of COVID-19 travelled from Victoria to Queensland earlier this month.

The woman first tested positive to the strain while in Victorian hotel quarantine, completed her isolation period, cleared her symptoms and was allowed to travel to Queensland.

But she again returned a positive COVID-19 test yesterday when she was tested by Queensland health officials, the state's chief health officer Dr Jeannette Young said.

"That's why we are now following through with her contacts. The risk is extremely low, very, very, very low because she is right at the end of her potential infectious period, and with a normal variant, we would not be at all concerned," Dr Young said.

"But it is not zero risk, so we are just taking all of those precautions."

The woman arrived in Victoria on December 26 after flying in from the UK. She was returned a positive test in hotel quarantine on December 27, and then completed 10 days of isolation. She was allowed to leave Victoria and fly to Queensland on January 5, arriving in Brisbane on a Jetstar flight.

"Then she travelled up to Maleny [on the Sunshine Coast] where her parents live and she has been staying with her parents. Her parents have been tested and we're working through any close contacts that need to be looked at there," Dr Young said.

Dr Young said it was uncertain whether the woman was infectious on the flight. "I don't know. She would have been ... at the end of her infectious period, but she did test positive yesterday."

Some people continue to excrete the virus for 120 days after their illness is complete, so exit testing is not typically a requirement for COVID-19 patients to exit isolation.

"You've got to have had first no symptoms for three days, and then second, at least 10 days since you tested [positive]. So she met those two criteria, so therefore she was allowed to leave isolation," Dr Young said.

She said exit testing had now been re-introduced as a requirement for people with the UK mutant variant.

 

[lovetravellingoz]

Well still good news...we hope...no further exposure site have added to the Qld Exposure site list. This list was last updated 07 Jan 2021 7:38pm

Contact tracing (exposure sites) — coronavirus (COVID-19)

Information about the current COVID-19 public contact tracing alerts in Queensland.

www.qld.gov.au

So that (if accurate) plus zero new local community cases for two days in a row is excellent news.

Just as well that the virus does not seem to be out and about like authorities were fearing as all the mixing and spreading prior to 6PM yesterday would have helped to spread it far and wide if it had of ben (or is).

 

[HappyFlyerFamily]

So if people can secrete virus for up to 4 months post-illness (which is well known) but now anyone testing positive will not be released from quarantine...people could be stuck in a hotel for as long as they test positive, even if not infectious?

Quite possibly if they have the UK strain but nothing announced as yet. It’s all left to the vague expert panel assessment when a UK strain patient gets released.

It doesn’t seem an equivalent is needed for those who pre-test positive when overseas. No genomic required if you are positive pre-test. Seemingly only need just a normal assessment or may be a subsequent PCR negative test before allowed on a flight home.

 

[DC3]

I was until this very moment unaware that wanting to be with one's immediate family was being needy.

Many now realise that things have changed and that this situation will be with us for quite some time. Our ancestors were so much better at handling adversity. Now, we seem to want instant gratification.

 

[DC3]

As far as I can tell, the courts have pretty much sided with the governments (generally) at every turn so far

Exactly. But there will be those who continue to flog a dead horse. Maybe they can page Clive.

 

[HappyFlyerFamily]

SMH reports:

Woman with UK strain of virus travelled from Victoria to Queensland

A woman who tested positive to the UK strain of COVID-19 travelled from Victoria to Queensland earlier this month.

The woman first tested positive to the strain while in Victorian hotel quarantine, completed her isolation period, cleared her symptoms and was allowed to travel to Queensland.

But she again returned a positive COVID-19 test yesterday when she was tested by Queensland health officials, the state's chief health officer Dr Jeannette Young said.

"That's why we are now following through with her contacts. The risk is extremely low, very, very, very low because she is right at the end of her potential infectious period, and with a normal variant, we would not be at all concerned," Dr Young said.

"But it is not zero risk, so we are just taking all of those precautions."

The woman arrived in Victoria on December 26 after flying in from the UK. She was returned a positive test in hotel quarantine on December 27, and then completed 10 days of isolation. She was allowed to leave Victoria and fly to Queensland on January 5, arriving in Brisbane on a Jetstar flight.

"Then she travelled up to Maleny [on the Sunshine Coast] where her parents live and she has been staying with her parents. Her parents have been tested and we're working through any close contacts that need to be looked at there," Dr Young said.

Dr Young said it was uncertain whether the woman was infectious on the flight. "I don't know. She would have been ... at the end of her infectious period, but she did test positive yesterday."

Some people continue to excrete the virus for 120 days after their illness is complete, so exit testing is not typically a requirement for COVID-19 patients to exit isolation.

"You've got to have had first no symptoms for three days, and then second, at least 10 days since you tested [positive]. So she met those two criteria, so therefore she was allowed to leave isolation," Dr Young said.

She said exit testing had now been re-introduced as a requirement for people with the UK mutant variant.

So as a general comment for the thread.....Qld /AHPPC/National Cabinet is saying because we know not much about the infectious period of the UK strain we are shutting down/locking down.........good grief. This is worse than the Parafield jump the gun.....at least Parafield was based on a lie. This time we are seemingly jumping at shadows.

edit: PS if they tested positive previously, isn’t the recording protocol the subsequent positive doesn’t get recorded??? So Qld covid-free count can continue...