Australia will need options other than hotel quarantine when the borders reopen

Since March 2020, more than 211,000 people have returned to Australia through hotel quarantine. While some coronavirus cases have leaked out into the community in Queensland, Victoria, New South Wales and Western Australia, so far the outbreaks have been able to be controlled. The National Cabinet continues to focus on hotel quarantine as the model for ensuring that people returning to Australia don’t spread the virus and its infectious variants inside the country. On Friday the federal government announced the Howard Springs quarantine facility in the Northern Territory would more than double its capacity to allow more stranded Australians to come home . But with more and more people wanting to return to Australia, some in the community are asking if it’s worth taking another look at allowing those travellers to quarantine at home instead. Has home quarantine been formally suggested before? Yep, it has. The interim report of the hotel quarantine inquiry in Victoria led by Jennifer Coate last year suggested a mix of hotel quarantine and quarantine in the home. It wouldn’t be for everyone — only those who were at minimal risk — presumably those coming from low-risk countries. “Where a person can safely quarantine at home… Read full this story

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• UPDATE: Malaysian drivers bewildered by Thailand Pass, as southern border reopens
• Sabah tourism ministry prepares for April 1 border reopening by seeking stakeholders’ feedback
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• Covid-19: No quarantine or testing for kids aged six and below after borders reopen among new SOPs, says KJ
• Saudi Airlines plane from Jeddah is first int'l flight to land at KLIA after border reopening
• Sheer delight, relief as border reopens at Johor Causeway, Linkedua

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