Covid Australia live update: Queensland announces lockdown after two cases as NSW records 19; Barnaby Joyce fined for not wearing mask
Barnaby Joyce #BarnabyJoyce
10.21pm EDT 22:21
AMA still backs official ATAGI advice on AstraZeneca 
The head of the Australian Medical Association [AMA] Dr Omar Khorshid said he was given no notice that the prime minister would encourage anyone under 60 to get the AstraZeneca vaccine, and that the AMA is still backing the official advice from the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation [Atagi].
On Monday night Scott Morrison announced anyone under 40 who is not yet eligible for a Pfizer vaccine is now able to go to their GP and receive the AstraZeneca vaccine if their doctor gives medical approval.
It took us by surprise, and it’s hard to know how to take that announcement because I think it’s going to be a limited number of people to take it up, given that they would be going against the expert ATAGI recommendation.
We knew about the indemnity announcement but we didn’t expect the AstraZeneca announcement. Our recommendation is still really for patients to follow the Atagi advice. Be patient and have the Atagi-recommended vaccine when it’s available. I am certainly still backing the expert advice at this stage.
I asked Khorshid why he thinks the federal government made the announcement then, given the AMA wasn’t informed, and given the Atagi advice still stands. He said:
You’d have to ask the government but my guess is that they are wanting to provide nervous Australians who are going into lockdown this week with something that they can actually do to improve their chances of getting through this and to push the nation’s vaccination program forward.
We do have surplus doses that are currently not being used so there is some capacity to bump up the delivery. So I presume they’re just … trying to take advantage of the crisis that’s now engulfing the nation with this delta outbreak. And of course if Delta really does ingrain itself in our community and the lockdowns aren’t successful or they’re too slow, then speeding up the vaccination program by using more options on the table is wise. The problem, of course, unfortunately, is that for the delta virus you need both doses to get reasonable protection and for AstraZeneca, that’s a minimum of eight weeks apart.
Khorshid said a priority for the AMA in light of last night’s announcement would be getting the new item number which covers consultations with a GP about the vaccine extended to include other age groups. At the moment, the item number only applies to those over 50.
I’ve spoken to the chief medical officer and I understand he’s going to get some advice out as soon as it is written to GPs.
The consultation item number was brand new anyway, it’s only a week old or something. So I don’t think the GPs have got their heads yet around how to use that. But certainly it’s not available for anyone under the age of 50 at this stage, so that consultation is just about the vaccines … it is actually not currently funded by Medicare. We need to patch that little hole, fairly promptly.
Staff are seen preparing vaccine doses inside the Melbourne Exhibition Centre COVID-19 Vaccination Centre. Photograph: Darrian Traynor/Getty Images
Updated at 11.14pm EDT
10.19pm EDT 22:19
Hmm, the Queensland CHO doesn’t seem to think the state can actually limit the number of arrivals.
Reporter:
Is there anything you can do under your powers as CHO to limit arrivals into Queensland?
Young:
No. That’s a commonwealth decision.
I wonder how Victoria did it twice then? If they did need federal approval it seems that was fairly forthcoming.
Updated at 10.25pm EDT
10.17pm EDT 22:17
GPs react to updated AstraZeneca eligibility 
I’ve been speaking with GPs this morning about the latest changes on AstraZeneca, announced by the prime minister, Scott Morrison, last night.
Most doctors told me they had no forewarning and are yet to receive any information from the federal government about the new policy or the changes to indemnity arrangements.
The federal health department’s eligibility checker also appears still to be telling younger Australians they are not eligible, unless they are a priority worker, have underlying health conditions, or require travel for essential work.
Dr Matthew Cardone, a GP in the Tweed, told me the announcement was yet another example of poor communication from the government.
All of our announcements we are learning in real-time with the patients, as they appear on the media. I have no formal documentation from the department of health at this stage regarding the changes in indemnity or the changes in policy. It’s frustrating, we just need clear, early messaging so we can be prepared to pivot with the program as it evolves. That’s not happening.
He said his clinic had seen a slight uptick in calls this morning from patients seeking AstraZeneca. But he said most of the extra demand was being driven by the spread of the Delta variant, rather than the announcement.
The failing here was that they should have had large amounts of Pfizer out to the general public sooner and they should have had AstraZeneca supply out to general practices three months ago, instead of trying to get rid of older stock now.
Dr Maria Boulton, a GP in Brisbane, said she was yet to see any increase in calls following the announcement.
But she said GPs were “very frustrated” that they continue to learn about important changes in the media.
It gives us no time to prepare … We are waiting to receive more details.
Dr Nathan Pinskier, a GP in Melbourne, welcomed the government’s announcement, saying it was overdue but a “perfectly practical” way forward, given the large number of younger Australians who wanted the vaccine. He said it needed to be supported with a vaccine awareness campaign.
Pinskier was also given no forewarning of the announcement.
Updated at 10.20pm EDT
10.12pm EDT 22:12
Why is the Gold Coast included in this lockdown, you ask?
Well, Young has the answers for you:
I’m worried about that flight that came in with that infected flight crew member from Sydney if you remember that flew from Sydney to the Gold Coast. So I am concerned. That’s why the Gold Coast is included in the LGAs of concern.
10.11pm EDT 22:11
Chief health officer Dr Jeannette Young says she is trying to avoid shutting down the whole of the Prince Charles hospital after it appears an administration worker was infected there.
So far we’ve contact traced that she had contact withed with two other concierges and one janitor.
This, please, is very, very early. We’ve been doing all of this work this morning, so we need to now go and confirm it … She was in the part of the hospital that has been put aside only for Covid patients. It’s quite separate to the rest of the hospital.
I wanted to stop the risk of having whole hospitals shut down, like PA had to a while back.
Updated at 10.13pm EDT
10.09pm EDT 22:09
Palaszczuk says she, and Victorian premier Daniel Andrews, raised wanted to reduce international arrivals at yesterday national cabinet.
I raised it at national cabinet. The Victorian premier raised it at national cabinet. There’s another meeting later this week of national cabinet. We’ve got to act now. That is a national issue.
The federal government has control of that. They can do that immediately so alleviate the pressure that you see the states are under at the moment and it’s a lot of pressure that states are under. The hotels or full or nearing maximum capacity and they are not meant to fight infectious diseases and we’re seeing now that even in Covid wards, it is so hard to contain this virus. This is highly infectious.
* It’s worth noting state can simply stop accepting any international arrivals unilaterally, as the Victorian government has done twice so far.
Updated at 10.14pm EDT
10.07pm EDT 22:07
Palaszczuk has been asked what level of vaccination Queensland would have to reach before they can avoid lockdowns … and she is talking about hotels again.
I think step one is that we need to look carefully about our overseas arrivals and until we have a large proportion of the Australian population vaccinated, we should be halting or reducing dramatically the number of people.
They should only be coming here for genuine reasons and should be quarantining out of – look, I’ve said this before – you should not be quarantining people in hotels along the eastern seaboard. You’ve also seen what’s happening in Perth and that that way you would avoid the lockdowns because you’ve got all the staff and everyone who’s involved with people and that’s where your dense populations are, so it’s a high risk.
Updated at 10.10pm EDT
10.06pm EDT 22:06
So it seems this Covid-19 ward worker is exposing a hole in Queensland’s vaccination requirement laws.
Palaszczuk:
The directive said that they needed to be in the ward vaccinated. She was located outside the ward so, for some reason, she wasn’t vaccinated. There will be a full investigation into that. Let’s just say this virus is contagious. It is hard to contain it in hotels and it’s hard to contain it in hospitals. That’s the truth of the matter.
Reporter:
Was she immediately outside the ward or elsewhere in the hospital?
Palaszczuk:
My understanding is outside the ward. There’s a dedicated facility to looking after Covid people. If someone tests positive in a hotel, we take them to Prince Charles. That is one of the hospitals and there’s a dedicated area.
Updated at 10.07pm EDT
10.04pm EDT 22:04
In the midst of this, Queensland has also tightened border restrictions on people coming from the Perth and Peel regions of WA and Darwin.
Palasczcuk:
If you are a Queensland resident, from any of those hotspots, and you will need to go into hotel quarantine, for anyone who is not a Queensland resident, you will need to apply for an exemption and if you are granted an exemption, you will need to go into hotel quarantine. That will take effect from 1am tomorrow morning and that will stay in place while those states have those declared hotspots.
Updated at 10.07pm EDT
10.02pm EDT 22:02
Police in New South Wales have confirmed that the deputy prime minister, Barnaby Joyce, has been fined $200 for not wearing a mask at an Armidale service station.
A police spokesman has told me a 54-year-old man was issued the fine after receiving a crime stoppers report in relation to a “possible breach” of public health orders at about 8am yesterday. Their inquiries revealed Joyce was not wearing a mask while he was inside the service station, and he was fined shortly after.
It’s understood he was there filling his car up with petrol, and was only inside for a short time.
Here is Joyce on the situation:
I went into the Caltex service station, I was going to the airport, filled the car up with fuel, went in, 30 seconds later $200 it cost me – because I didn’t wear one of these [a mask].