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Coronavirus Australia live news: PM gives update on Victoria response as aged care homes and schools in south-east Queensland closed Coronavirus Australia live update: Queensland closes border to Sydney as NSW records 19 new Covid-19 cases
(32 minutes later)
Authorities not ruling out further border restrictions after two women who returned to Brisbane from Melbourne test positive. Almost 20% of aged care facilities in Victoria affected as crisis deepens. Follow live Queensland announces border closure to greater Sydney after two women who returned to Brisbane from Melbourne test positive. Almost 20% of aged care facilities in Victoria affected as crisis deepens. Follow live
Also before we go back to Canberra I wanted to let you know that the Victorian premier Daniel Andrews and health minister Jenny Mikakos will give the coronavirus update at 11.45am.
Back to NSW quickly, where premier Gladys Berejiklian is addressing the media and said she was given no prior notice of Queensland closing its border to greater Sydney, which the Queensland premier, Annastacia Palaszczuk announced via tweet a short time ago.
The prime minister, Scott Morrison, was asked if the federal and Victorian government were playing a “blame game” over who was responsible for the Covid-19 crisis currently in aged care in Melbourne.
Morrison said:
However Morrison obliquely mentioned Andrews’s comment that he would not put his mother in some of the private aged care facilities in Melbourne, saying decisions about placing a loved one in aged care was very difficult.
Back to Canberra, Prof Brendan Murphy said the aged care facility of the biggest concern in Melbourne at the moment is Epping Gardens aged care in Epping, where the majority of the workforce had to go into quarantine and where the ADF moved in late last night.
He said two-thirds of the residents at St Basil’s home for the aged in Fawkner are now in hospital, that’s 64 residents, with the remaining 32 being cared for in the home.
He also disputed claims aged care residents had been turned away from hospital.
NSW has recorded 19 new cases of coronavirus in the 24 hours to 8pm last night. Two of those cases are in hotel quarantine.
Queensland premier Annastacia Palaszczuk says no one from greater Sydney will be allowed into Queensland from 1am on Saturday.
Murphy said there are outbreaks in 77 of the 465 residential aged care facilities in Melbourne.
He says that given how widespread community transmission has been in Melbourne, “that, in some respects, shows just how well the others have done”.
Murphy said most of the 77 facilities only have “one or two small cases” and have been met with a “swift and prompt” public health response.
To date, 49 people in aged care in Victoria have died after testing positive to Covid-19.
Prof Brendan Murphy said the aged care sector could not protect against the virus coming into residential aged care facilities.
Morrison said the outbreak in Melbourne was impacting the Australian economy.
He said restaurant bookings and employment figures in other states were down due to the Victorian outbreak.
Morrison said he wanted to thank the Victorian premier, Daniel Andrews, for working together on the response. There’s been some sniping between the Victorian and federal government over whose fault this aged care crisis is (the answer is it’s both their fault).
He says:
Morrison said the first Ausmat team will arrive in Victoria tomorrow, and five teams would be stood up there “within a reasonable period of time”.Morrison said the first Ausmat team will arrive in Victoria tomorrow, and five teams would be stood up there “within a reasonable period of time”.
Ausmat teams have seven members, and are usually used in Australia’s humanitarian response to disasters overseas.Ausmat teams have seven members, and are usually used in Australia’s humanitarian response to disasters overseas.
He also said that 150,000 aged care workers had now completed an online training module on infection control, through a refresher cause issued by the new Victorian Aged Care Response Centre which was set up in Melbourne this weekend. He also said that 150,000 aged care workers had now completed an online training module on infection control, through a refresher course issued by the new Victorian Aged Care Response Centre which was set up in Melbourne this weekend.
The aged care minister, Richard Colbeck, has been taking the lead on communicating with families, Morrison said.The aged care minister, Richard Colbeck, has been taking the lead on communicating with families, Morrison said.
Morrison:Morrison:
Morrison said there had been the “immediate isolation of entire workforces in these places,” where there had been widespread infection among staff.Morrison said there had been the “immediate isolation of entire workforces in these places,” where there had been widespread infection among staff.
Morrison thanked Victoria for suspending non-urgent elective surgery to free up hospital capacity for aged care residents to be moved to hospital, and for nurses to move in to aged care to supplement that workforce.Morrison thanked Victoria for suspending non-urgent elective surgery to free up hospital capacity for aged care residents to be moved to hospital, and for nurses to move in to aged care to supplement that workforce.
Morrison said Australia was now experiencing the same issues as every other country that has had “sustained community transmission,” as there was now in Victoria.Morrison said Australia was now experiencing the same issues as every other country that has had “sustained community transmission,” as there was now in Victoria.
Morrison said Covid-19 had got into aged care facilities through workers, who were infected in the community, and the focus now was to protect against workplace transmission.Morrison said Covid-19 had got into aged care facilities through workers, who were infected in the community, and the focus now was to protect against workplace transmission.
There are 430 aged care facilities in Melbourne, he said.There are 430 aged care facilities in Melbourne, he said.
Morrison said the situation in aged care in Victoria was “very distressing”.Morrison said the situation in aged care in Victoria was “very distressing”.
Prime minister Scott Morrison is speaking in Canberra about the aged care situation in Victoria.Prime minister Scott Morrison is speaking in Canberra about the aged care situation in Victoria.
He is alongside the former chief medical officer, Prof Brendan Murphy, who is now the secretary of the federal health department and therefore has oversight of aged care matters.He is alongside the former chief medical officer, Prof Brendan Murphy, who is now the secretary of the federal health department and therefore has oversight of aged care matters.
The Queensland chief health officer, Dr Jeanette Young, said the state has already closed its border to anyone from Victoria, and would not say if border restrictions would be tightened in response to this latest case.The Queensland chief health officer, Dr Jeanette Young, said the state has already closed its border to anyone from Victoria, and would not say if border restrictions would be tightened in response to this latest case.
It’s the first time a Covid-19 case has been detected outside of quarantine in Queensland since May.It’s the first time a Covid-19 case has been detected outside of quarantine in Queensland since May.
Young said Queensland still does not have community transmission.Young said Queensland still does not have community transmission.
Queensland’s deputy police commissioner, Steve Gollschewski, said police will allege that the two women provided false information on their border declaration pass to get back in to Queensland.
He said the investigation was still ongoing but “the initial investigation is indicating that there were incorrect details on their declaration passes”.
Queensland police are working with authorities in other states to track the women’s movements.
Gollschewski said that more than 1.1m people have crossed the Queensland border and signed a border declaration pass since the border reopened and the system was put in place on 10 July.
The Queensland chief health officer, Dr Jeanette Young, is angry.
Queensland has recorded two new cases of Covid-19, the first new cases detected in the community in that state for many weeks.
The new cases are in women who returned to Queensland from Melbourne eight days ago, via Sydney. They did not self-isolate, despite requirements in place for everyone who was in Victoria in the past 14 days to self-isolate upon return to Queensland.
Health minister Steven Miles said:
Miles said the most important message was for anyone with symptoms in the southern suburbs of Brisbane to get tested.
He said Queensland had responded to situations like this before, and would do everything needed to stop the spread of community transmission.
The bushfire royal commission will hold another four days of hearings from Monday, looking at “situational awareness, decision making and resource sharing at a national level”.
The royal commission was supposed to hand down its final report next month, in time for the start of the bushfire season which is rapidly approaching, but it has been extended for another two months and will now deliver the report in October.
We had fires from late August in Queensland last year, and quite serious fires in Queensland and northern NSW by October.
Yes, that’s right: we could have bushfires and a Covid-19 second wave lockdown at the same time. Get ready.
The president of the Australian Medical Association, Dr Tony Bartone, says “several hundred nurses” have been brought in to Victoria from interstate to bolster the staff numbers in residential aged care homes.
Bartone told the ABC that the AMA had been calling for a coordinated response to the outbreak, and was glad to see that all available resources were now being put into the aged care homes, three weeks after the outbreak began to gather steam.
There are now 763 active cases of Covid-19 in staff and residents across 80 aged care services in Melbourne. As we’ve mentioned before, that has caused a staffing crisis because hundreds of aged care workers are self-isolating as close contacts, and Victoria has paused all non-essential elective surgery to free up nursing staff to work in aged care.
Bartone said:
He added:
But he said he had some concerns about how well the response was being coordinated, saying it is an “enormous implementation when you’re actually replacing at very short notice, even less than an hour an entire cohort of a facility staff with another outside set of staff”.
The facility he’s talking about here is St Basil’s, where, as I mentioned earlier, the whole staff, including senior managers, had to self-isolate.
A bit of planning around the morning’s press conferences.
The prime minister, Scott Morrison, is expected to step up at 10.30am.
NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian will stand up with the director of health protection at NSW Health, Dr Jeremy McAnulty, at 11am.
We’re standing by to hear from the Queensland premier, Annastacia Palaszczuk, about the new case recorded in that state overnight.
And we still have not got a time for the Victorian coronavirus press conference today.
Dreamworld’s parent company, Ardent Leisure, will plead guilty to workplace safety charges over the fatal 2016 Thunder River Rapids ride tragedy, which killed four people.
More from AAP:
As always you can follow our rolling global coverage on the coronavirus crisis here.
The Committee for Sydney says Sydneysiders should be required to wear a face mask to prevent a second wave infection taking hold, which would return the city to lockdown.
CEO Gabriel Metcalf said mandatory rules around wearing masks in certain high-risk areas in Sydney is the best hope to avoid more “draconian options”.
It should be noted that the Committee for Sydney is basically a development, planning and events advocacy group, without any medical expertise.
Metcalf said without making the wearing of masks mandatory, it’s unlikely Sydney would get to the threshold of 80% of people wearing masks, which he says is the level of compliance necessary to make face masks effective against general community transmission.
A number of residents in Melbourne’s Epping Gardens aged care facility, which is linked to 82 active coronavirus cases among residents and staff, were transferred to hospital yesterday, and army medics came in to cover staff who are self-isolating.