NSW needs to mandate masks outdoors, provide adequate financial support, set up a ‘ring of steel’, use rapid tests for essential workers, and ensure cases not in full isolation get to zero, among others.
The Federal government has just announced it will help fund the building of a quarantine facility in Victoria; meanwhile UNSW academics wonder why it has taken this long.
Australia's expedited plan to start dishing out COVID jabs in mid-late February will call for NASA-like logistical organisation. And ideally, no more clusters of infections to distract frontline workers.
A previous version of Melbourne's COVID roadmap flagged an exclusive bubble between two households. The new plan allows residents to have two adult visitors per day, which is far riskier.
The Premier said Melbourne's restrictions could be eased more than expected on Monday. But from an outbreak-management perspective, we should be careful of easing too soon.
We have to balance the risk of transmission with the mental health challenges of lockdowns. A bubble system could alleviate loneliness while minimising infection risk.
