Page 1060 - Week 04 - Tuesday, 3 May 2022
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The Chief Health Officer has provided me with her 25th and 26th reports on the status of the public health emergency due to COVID-19, which I will table. These reports outline the actions taken by the Chief Health Officer and ACT Health’s COVID-19 response team in the 30 days to 6 April and up until 2 May.
In her report of 2 May, the Chief Health Officer has advised the government that she intends to revoke the public health directions that require vaccination for workers in the health care and education settings in the ACT from 11.59 pm on 13 May. The revocation of these vaccination requirements is based on updated advice from the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee on mandatory vaccination for high-risk settings, which no longer extends to workers in health care settings and does not recommend mandatory vaccination for education workers.
The Chief Health Officer is also satisfied that the high level of vaccination coverage across the eligible population aged five years and over has reduced the risk of outbreaks and poor health outcomes in primary schools and early childhood education and care settings. Vaccination requirements will still be in effect for workers in aged care, disability and other care as the risk of outbreaks and severe illness among people they care for remains high. This approach is also consistent with the national advice. The Chief Health Officer will continue to monitor the need for vaccination for these workers to ensure our public health directions remain proportionate.
Madam Speaker, the health and wellbeing of our community remains of the upmost importance and the ACT government will continue to provide Canberrans with up-to-date public health advice as we head into winter. While we acknowledge that changes to test, trace, isolate and quarantine will likely lead to an increase in cases in the community, these changes will assist businesses and workplaces that have experienced significant staff shortages and will improve the wellbeing of individuals who become household contacts.
The ACT’s nation-leading vaccination coverage and continued compliance with public health advice puts us in a great position to be able to tackle the winter season, and the challenges this may bring. I present the following papers:
Status of the Public Health Emergency due to COVID-19—
Chief Health Officer Report 25—April 2022, dated 8 April 2022.
Chief Health Officer Report 26—May 2022, dated 2 May 2022.
Coronavirus (COVID-19)—ACT Government response—Update—Ministerial statement, 3 May 2022.
I move:
That the Assembly take note of the ministerial statement.
Question resolved in the affirmative.
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