Work from home, mask wearing encouraged as ‘very significant’ Omicron wave intensifies
Employers have been called on to allow work from home and consider mask wearing in the office as a “very significant” COVID-19 wave infects hundreds of thousands of Australians each week.
Health Minister Mark Butler rung the alarm bell on COVID-19 cases in Australia on Tuesday as the Omicron wave coupled with a spike in influenza cases puts increased pressure on the hospital system.
“As of today, there are more than 5200 Australians in hospital with COVID,” Butler said
“We are seeing hundreds and hundreds of thousands of Australians infected every single week in this wave.”
The increase in numbers has led Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly to call on “employers to allow work from home if feasible” and consider mask wearing during the winter Omicron wave.
“We are at the start of this wave, not the end,” Kelly said.
“We cannot stop this wave of infections but we can slow the spread and protect the vulnerable,” he added in a statement.
“We have done this before and we can do it again.”
Kelly said the new Omicron variant, BA.5, is a “significant threat” and is causing the surge in infections.
“It’s much more infectious than earlier variants,” he said
“It’s also very good at escaping immunity, whether that is from a previous infection so, you can get re-infected with this particular variant.”
The impact of this wave of COVID-19 has been exacerbated by a rise in flu cases, Kelly said.
“The situation we confront today in comparison to January is that hospitals are also grappling with flu,” he said.
“A range of other respiratory illnesses and the usual surge in hospital activity that we see during winter.”
Butler said hospitalisations were “almost certain” to increase but said currently there are fewer people in intensive care compared to the January wave.
“Our government is committed to doing everything possible to get Australia through this winter safely and healthily,” Butler said.
Renewed calls to get vaccinated for flu and COVID-19
Butler urged eligible Australians to come forward for their booster shots.
He said 550,000 Australians have received their fourth dose over the past seven days.
“Two doses of COVID vaccines are just not enough,” he said.
The most triple vaccinated countries on Earth
He also urged all Australians, particularly children, to get vaccinated for the flu.
“Our vaccination rates for influenza for under five year olds are lagging where they historically have been at this point in the flu season, lagging quite considerably,” he said.
“As we know, through tragic experience, children under the age of five, and particularly children under the age of two, are a very high risk category for influenza.”
Six in ten of the 1300 Australians hospitalised for the flu this year have been under the age of 16.
Authorities call for more protections against COVID-19
Kelly has urged people to wear masks when away from home in crowded indoor spaces as a new Omicron variant rips through Australia.
“This will not be forever but for the next few weeks,” Kelly said.
“This is the way we can actually influence the spread of the virus, protect vulnerable people in our community and also protect our healthcare systems which are already under strain.”
Kelly said employers should “consider the feasibility of some employees working from home, wearing masks in the workplace and support employees to take leave when sick”.
Moderna ‘provisionally approved’ for young children
Australia’s health regulator the Therapeutic Goods Administration has provisionally approved the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine for children aged between six months and five-years-old.
But ATAGI still needs to give the green light in order for young Australians to get the shot.
“Until that point, this is simply not a vaccine that would be available to those children,” Butler said.
He added there were also supply problems with the Moderna vaccine for young children, which is different from the adult shot.
Butler urged parents to book an appointment for their children to be vaccinated once the approval process is completed.
