Australian Greens: Greens caution against scrapping COVID isolation period

The Victorian Greens have cautioned the Victorian Labor Government against scrapping the requirement for Victorians with COVID to isolate for five days, ahead of today’s national cabinet meeting.

The Greens say without some basic public health measures in place the next COVID wave could cause our already strained hospital system to buckle under the pressure.

We should not be caving into the economic agenda being pushed by NSW and the Commonwealth, who likely want to stop isolation payments. 

Quotes attributable to Victorian Greens health spokesperson, Dr Tim Read:  

“Victoria went into this pandemic with fewer hospital beds per capita than NSW and after two years of coping with thousands of COVID cases and COVID-induced staff shortages, our health workers are exhausted. 

“Many feel abandoned by our Government which has just scrapped mask requirements on public transport, shortened the isolation period and now wants to scrap it entirely – all against the health advice from our CHO. 

“Unless we retain some basic public health measures there will be nothing to slow the next increase in COVID which may not be far away. 

“Recently announced increases in health funding have not had time to take effect, so if we get another increase in COVID cases, we will see further problems with ambulance delays, overcrowded EDs and burnt-out health staff leaving the system.

“No amount of promises for future hospitals or billions in health funding will undo the damage caused by the increase in COVID admissions we’ll see without basic public health measures.”