Victoria’s health minister has said she rejected the state health director’s recommendations to force her to wear masks in retail and early education settings in response to the rising number of cases.
Key points:
- Victoria’s mask rules will not change despite the advice of the state health director
- A new campaign has been launched to encourage people to receive all doses of vaccine for which they are eligible
- The isolation exemption for recent cases has been reduced from 12 weeks to four weeks
Victoria has recorded 16 new deaths and 10,627 new cases of the virus.
The number of people hospitalized with COVID rose from 402 in mid-June to 737 on Tuesday.
The government predicts that hospitalization figures will continue to rise as winter progresses, projecting a possible increase of approximately 200 admissions per day.
Health Department councils say increasing the use of indoor masks could reduce that figure to between 150 and 180 admissions per day.
The increase in hospitalizations prompted some health experts to ask state and federal authorities to change their strategies to deal with COVID-19.
The Victorian government has announced new measures that will take effect at 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday, including a new public health campaign to encourage people to receive all doses of vaccine for which they are eligible.
It is also reviewing the testing and isolation exemption period for people who have recently contracted the virus from 12 weeks to four weeks.
The government said the measure was in response to emerging evidence that new variants of COVID-19 may evade previous immunity obtained from the infection.
The latest data show an increase in the BA.4 / BA.5 variants in Victoria wastewater catchments, indicating that these are now the dominant circulating strains in the community, with BA.5 more prevalent than BA. 4.
In the two weeks prior to July 8, BA.4 / BA.5 were found in 70% of all clinical genomic samples.
There are no changes to the mask rules despite the advice of CHO
Victoria Health Minister Mary-Ann Thomas confirmed that she decided not to follow some of the health director’s recommendations on mask use.
Acting CHO Ben Cowie recommended that masks be mandatory in early education and business settings, but the minister said she would not reintroduce such measures.
Victoria Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas has confirmed she did not act on the advice of the health director. (AAP: Joel Carrett)
“The health director has given his advice and I have accepted his advice, unless I have chosen not to extend the mandates to wear a mask,” he said.
“More obligation on masks was not the most effective way to get the message across about the importance of wearing masks. We need to empower Victorians to make their own decisions.”
Ms Thomas said the use of masks is encouraged in indoor and crowded environments, but there is no change to the current rules.
Masks are only mandatory in certain Victoria settings, such as on public transportation or when visiting a hospital. (ABC News: Rachel Clayton)
“I have had the opportunity to consult with industry leaders. What our business leaders know and what they experienced last January was that if they do not take action they will lose their staff because of COVID,” he said.
“I have assurances from business and community leaders that they will actively work to encourage the use of masks.”
Opposition leader Matthew Guy has criticized the government for ignoring health advice, calling it a hypocrite.
“Seven months ago, Labor ridiculed others for ignoring advice on mask warrants. Now they have done the same,” Guy said.
“The health minister has been forced to clean up and admit that she has rejected the advice of the incumbent health director, because for Labor, it’s all a matter of policy.”
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Posted 11 hours, 11 hours ago, Tuesday, July 12, 2022 at 2:23 AM, updated 7 hours ago, 7 hours ago, Tuesday, July 12, 2022 at 6:46 AM