Queensland set to open border to Victorians from Friday - The Age

Melburnians will be able to enter Queensland from Friday, just in time for the school holidays.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced the state will reopen to all Victorian travellers on Friday at 1am.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk. Credit:Attila Csaszar

“That is great news for people there,” she said during a COVID-19 update on Tuesday. “I know there are a lot of people that would have had their holidays booked to Queensland.”

Ms Palaszczuk said the state’s chief health officer Dr Jeannette Young felt “comfortable with the way Victoria is at, and we will keep a close eye on NSW.”

The update comes after Victoria recorded no new local cases on Tuesday and as New Zealand prepared to resume quarantine-free travel with the state.

Staff at Kirk’s Wine Bar in Melbourne prepare for the day’s trade. Credit:Getty Images

There were two cases recorded in Victoria’s hotel quarantine on Tuesday. More than 13,000 COVID-19 test results were processed in the past 24 hours and more than 15,000 people received their vaccine doses.

In NSW, cases continue to grow. The state recorded 10 new cases of COVID-19 in the community on Tuesday - five cases were detected in the 24 hours to 8pm on Monday, two of which had already been reported. An additional seven cases were detected after 8pm.

Travel restrictions ease ahead of school holidays

Queensland’s eased border restrictions came after the Northern Territory revoked its designation of Greater Melbourne as a COVID-19 hotspot on Monday, meaning that visitors to the territory who have passed through the city would no longer need to quarantine on arrival.

Tasmania downgraded Melbourne to low-risk at 12.01am on Tuesday. People from Melbourne who visit the state will also no longer need to quarantine.

South Australia announced on Tuesday it would reopen to people from Greater Melbourne from 12.01am on Friday.

Victoria’s travel bubble with New Zealand, which snapped shut during the last lockdown, will resume from 11.59pm on Tuesday after the Ministry of Health in Wellington decided the remaining public health risk was low.

Tens of thousands in Victoria yet to book second Pfizer dose: Sutton

Victoria’s Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton has said there are tens of thousands of Pfizer vaccine recipients in the state who are due for their second dose, but are yet to book in for it.

“Last week we had 50,000 people hit the three-week mark for their second dose, and 30,000 people booked,” Professor Sutton said during the state’s COVID-19 update on Tuesday.

“This week, we’ve got about 95,000 first dose Pfizer recipients who will be hitting the three-week mark, and around 50,000 bookings in the system as of yesterday.”

Professor Sutton said the first dose of the Pfizer vaccine offered recipients between 60 and 70 per cent protection.

He said the second dose “finishes the job”, providing upwards of 95 per cent protection from severe illness and death. “We thank you for your enthusiasm, we thank you for leading the way and for setting an example, but the job is not finished - we need you to do it one more time,” Professor Sutton said.

“It’s critically important to get that follow-up dose.”

Second doses of the Pfizer vaccine can be administered between three and six weeks after the first dose.

State’s Pfizer vaccine allocation to rise

Professor Sutton’s plea for Victorians to book their second Pfizer dose comes after a spokesperson for federal Health Minister Greg Hunt revealed late on Monday that Victoria’s allocation of Pfizer would increase from 407,000 doses in June to more than 560,000 in July.

Almost all of the increase will be for the state’s general practices, which have had few Pfizer vaccines up until now, with little additional supply for the mass vaccination clinics run by the Victorian government.

The July allocation will include 380,000 doses for the government to deliver through the mass vaccination hubs and an additional 153,000 for Victorian GPs, taking their monthly total to 180,000 doses. A recent regulation change is paving the way for the vaccinations to occur at medical clinics, by allowing unopened vials to be stored in domestic freezers rather than ultra-cold freezers.

GPs are calling for an advertising campaign to address “the real mess of messages” around the national rollout.

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With Michael Fowler, Aisha Dow and Rachel Clun

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2021-06-22 01:24:36Z
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