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What we know today, Wednesday December 22

South Australia has recorded 198 new COVID cases in the past 24 hours, with local authorities set to approve the widespread rollout of COVID-19 rapid antigen tests – but only “at the right time”.

Dec 22, 2021, updated Dec 22, 2021
SA chief public health officer Professor Nicola Spurrier and Premier Steven Marshall. Photo: Tony Lewis/InDaily

SA chief public health officer Professor Nicola Spurrier and Premier Steven Marshall. Photo: Tony Lewis/InDaily

198 new SA cases

South Australia has recorded 198 new COVID cases in the past 24 hours, SA Health has confirmed.

It follows triple-digit case figures in the preceding two days, for a total of 825 new cases since the state’s border reopened on November 23.

SA has almost doubled its total number of recorded cases in that time, to 1747.

New cases today include 18 children, nine teenagers, 89 women aged between 18 and 99 and 82 males aged between 18 and 93, SA Health said.

Locally-acquired infections accounted for 33 of the new cases with contacts known, 15 were acquired interstate and 149 cases are still under investigation.

One case acquired their infection in South Australia but the contact has been deemed unknown.

Five people – two men, aged in their 30s and 60s, and three women in their 20s, 30s and 90s – are at the Royal Adelaide Hospital.

Today’s figures put South Australia over the threshold for an official COVID-19 outbreak based on local modelling released in early November.

That predicted a 27 per cent chance of an outbreak, which was defined as “averaging more than 100 cases per day over any three-day period”.

Premier Steven Marshall conceded the modelling had “some inaccuracies”.

“We’re seeing a much higher infection rate with Delta and now with Omicron,” he said.

However, the premier said hospitalisation rates remained “much lower”.

SA rapid antigen test rollout to be approved “at the right time”

South Australian authorities are set to approve the widespread rollout of COVID-19 rapid antigen tests as case numbers continue to rise – but only “at the right time”.

The tests are currently used in certain sectors, including health and mining, but there have been growing calls for local sales to be approved.

Premier Steven Marshall says the government is keen to make them available to the wider community.

“But it’s got to be done at the right time,” Marshall said on Wednesday.

“It’s a very good surveillance test for those people who don’t have any symptoms but it is not a replacement for the PCR (test).”

“We are rapidly getting to the point where the rapid antigen test will be appropriate. I would think in the next couple of days we will be able to give advice on that.”

There have been five consecutive days of record case numbers in SA following the opening of the state’s borders late last month.

The state recorded 154 infections on Tuesday, with Wednesday’s tally expected to rise again.

The numbers are significantly higher than modelling suggested with the premier conceding it had “some inaccuracies”.

“We’re seeing a much higher infection rate with Delta and now with Omicron,” he said.

However, the premier said hospitalisation rates remained “much lower”.

Cases approach 4000 a day in NSW after surge

NSW has recorded 3763 new COVID-19 cases as testing clinics are inundated and the state government resists calls to reinstate mask mandates.

The new cases were recorded in the 24 hours to 8pm on Tuesday from 151,443 tests.

That’s a jump of 706 cases from the previous day’s record of 3057 cases, from 136,972 tests.

There are 302 people in hospital with the virus – up from 284 – and 40 of them are in ICU, one more than the previous day.

The vaccination rate remains the same with 94.9 per cent of people aged 16 and older having had one dose, while 93.4 per cent of people are fully jabbed.

Some 81.5 per cent of people aged 12-15 have had one dose of a vaccine and 78.1 per cent have had both doses.

Victoria reported 1503 new COVID-19 cases and six deaths as testing sites were again overrun.

A total of 394 patients are in hospital, including 70 who are actively infected with the virus and in intensive care, with 41 on ventilators.

The seven-day hospitalisation average has risen by one to 391.

Testers processed 92,262 results in the 24 hours to Tuesday morning – a daily record for the state – while 17,443 people were vaccinated in state-run hubs.

Victoria’s testing system continues to buckle under the weight of people seeking testing in the lead up to Christmas.

At least 13 testing sites were temporarily closed at 8.15am after reaching capacity.

Adelaide Oval and more hospitality venues join growing exposure site list

Adelaide Oval and more city restaurants, nightclubs and pubs as well as a church have been added to Adelaide’s expanding list of exposure sites.

SA Health yesterday named the following as close contact exposure sites:

Busan Baby, (patrons only) from 6.15pm to 9pm Thursday 16 December

eleven, from 1.30pm to 4.30pm to Friday 17 December

Hains & Co from 4pm to 4.30pm Friday 17 December

The Stag Hotel from 1.15pm to 2.20pm Friday 17 December

Sushi Train, Firle, from 1pm to 2pm Wednesday 15 December and 7.15pm to 8.20pm Thursday 16 December

Queen’s Head Hotel, North Adelaide, from 12.30pm to 2.30pm Friday 17 December

Mamma Carmela at Glenelg from 9.30am to 3.30pm Tuesday 14 December and 9am to 3.30pm Wednesday 15 December

arkhé, Norwood, from 9am Tuesday 14 December to 2am Wednesday 15 December, 9am Wednesday 15 December to 2am Thursday 16 December, 9am Thursday 16 December to 2am Friday 17 December, and 9am Friday 17 December to 2am Saturday 18 December

Willunga Hotel from 4pm to 930pm Friday 10 December

Cam Wah Chinese & Vietnamese Restaurant, Woodville Park, from 11am to 1230pm Thursday 16 December

Desert Cave Restaurant Umbertos, Coober Pedy, from 7pm to 830pm Sunday 19 December

Ryderwear Gym, Flinders Park, from 4pm to 5pm Saturday 11 December, 230pm to 330pm Monday 13 December and from 1.20pm to 2pm Tuesday 14 December

Christian Life Bible Church, Kilkenny, from 10am to 1.20pm Sunday 12 December

SA Health says unvaccinated contacts must quarantine for 14 days and get tested immediately and again on days six and 13, while vaccinated contacts must quarantine for seven days, get tested immediately and again on days six and 13.

Adelaide Oval has been named a low risk casual contact site, from 2pm to 11pm Friday 17 December, 6pm to 10pm Saturday 18 December and from 3pm to 7pm Sunday 19 December. People should monitor for symptoms and get tested if any develop.

Busan Baby staff are also considered casual contacts and must get tested immediately and quarantine until they received a negative result and get tested again on days six and 13.

SA Health also said yesterday that 154 new daily cases had been recorded, and that six residential aged care facility residents from one site were COVID-positive.

Omicron dominates national agenda as leaders meet today

Doctors are pleading with Australian governments to bring back mask mandates and density limits as leaders prepare to meet to discuss the rapid spread of the Omicron variant of COVID-19.

The call comes after Nine newspapers cited Doherty Institute modelling being prepared for national cabinet predicting up to 200,000 COVID-19 cases a day by late January or early February unless restrictions are put in place.

“Boosters alone will not be fast enough to halt the spread of Omicron,” the modelling says.

Australian Medical Association Vice President Chris Moy said Doherty modelling throughout the pandemic had been pretty on the mark.

“I’m confident in the numbers,” he said.

“The million dollar question is … how many people are going to end up in hospital and in intensive care wards.

“That’s why the AMA is pleading with governments across Australia, state and federal, to take a precautionary approach and get in front of this … simple things like masks and some use of QR codes and some density limits.”

Prime Minister Scott Morrison will discuss the issue with state and territory leaders at Wednesday’s national cabinet meeting.

Morrison is also expected to repeat his call for states to hold the line on lockdowns.

“We’re not going back to lockdowns. We’re not going back to shutting down peoples’ lives,” he said on Tuesday.

“We’re going forward to live with this virus with common sense and responsibility.

“There will be other variants beyond Omicron and we have to ensure we are putting in place measures that Australians can live with.”

National cabinet is also expected to receive advice on whether three jabs will be needed for someone to be defined as fully vaccinated, and advice on whether the time frame between a second and third jab should be shortened to three or four months, from a current five months.

As of Tuesday, 1.5 million people had gotten a Pfizer or Moderna booster shot out of an eligible group of 3.2 million.

COVID-19 swab at a Melbourne testing site on Wednesday. Photo: AAP/Con Chronis

In primary care and state fridges, there are currently 3.2 million of the mRNA vaccines.

With federal government deliveries underway, there are expected to be 4.8 million mRNA doses in fridges by Christmas.

The national double-dose vaccination rate for people aged 16 and older has surpassed 90 per cent.

But AMA president Dr Omar Khorshid on Tuesday poured cold water on the idea earlier boosters would be a silver bullet in stopping the spread, saying more people being eligible won’t help the pace of the rollout.

“I know everyone’s desperately keen to get their booster but changing eligibility doesn’t magically mean the rollout is going to go faster,” he said.

“The problem with rolling out boosters is your access to vaccinators, to people who actually put the needle into the arm. We don’t have the capacity … to actually deliver more boosters than are being done at the moment.”

Khorshid said sensible measures like wearing masks or simple social distancing requirements were needed to put a “handbrake” on the spread while the booster rollout caught up.

He also called upon leaders to enact a national plan to directly respond to the Omicron variant.

“Omicron … may be mild, but we just don’t know,” he said.

“Now is not the time to be taking risks with people’s lives and with our economies going into next year.”

Victory declared in fruit fly battle but one outbreak still active

Most residents across much of metropolitan Adelaide are able to move fruit from their properties after the State Government claimed success in a two years eradication battle with Mediterranean fruit fly.

While 170 suburbs are now cleared to take fruit from their areas, Ridleyton in Adelaide’s west is still hit by a Queensland fruit fly outbreak.

Primary Industries minister David Basham thanked the public for following strict bans on fruit movement

“From the northern suburbs to the southern suburbs and from beach to the hills, this has been a significant operation right across metropolitan Adelaide to eradicate Mediterranean fruit fly,” he said.

“Now the majority of Adelaide residents can once again move fruit and vegetables from their property, which will be a huge relief to many.

“It’s been an extensive program visiting residents as our fruit fly officers went door-to-door undertaking organic baiting and checking fruit and I’d like to thank the residents of Adelaide for their support during this time.”

Basham said it had been “by far the largest successful fruit fly eradication campaign ever delivered in Australia”.

“By working together as a community, we have protected our local fresh fruit industry from the Medfly threat and we have also stopped this pest from spreading from Western Australia to the eastern state,” he said.

“There are still Queensland fruit fly outbreaks affecting Ridleyton in the city and in the Riverland so I ask those living in those areas as well as surrounding suburbs to carefully check the map on the fruit fly website.

“Those within the red outbreak zone still can’t move fruit and vegetables from their properties but those within the yellow areas can. Make sure you don’t move fruit out of a yellow area into a green.

“Everyone must continue to be vigilant and keep their gardens tidy to prevent fruit fly in the future. I urge everyone to pick fruit once ripe, collect fallen fruit, check fruit for maggots, and call the Fruit Fly Hotline on 1300 666 010 if you see anything suspicious.”

-With AAP and Reuters

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