Government to announce changes to quarantine protocols today

The government is set to announce changes to quarantine protocols on Wednesday, Health Minister Chris Fearne said.

It is understood that the government is reacting to the calls for change of quarantine rules for Maltese returning from red list countries.

Maltese citizens so far have had to stay in so-called quarantine hotels even if they assured the health authorities that they were ready to follow quarantine restrictions in their own property.

People staying in quarantine hotels are paying €100 per room each day. As things stand, people entering Malta from a list of socalled ‘ dark red’ countries must spend a period of 14 days in quarantine – regardless of whether they are vaccinated or not. The expenses would amount to €1,400, excluding food and other services.

In a post on Facebook, Fearne said that the changes to travel restrictions and quarantine protocols will be announced on Wednesday.

Sources said the government has been discussing these since last week, before the case of Rachel Umanah, a girl with Down Syndrome.

Early this week, her mother appealed to the health authorities to allow her daughter to quarantine at home rather than in a hotel room.

Carmen Umanah, Rachel Umanah’s mother, said that she is the only one who truly understands what her daughter goes through when it comes to her condition.

The Malta Union of Midwives & Nurses on Tuesday joined the chorus protesting against the mandatory hotel quarantine period, saying that the measures are nothing more than a “punishment.”

“It is clearly evident that this is not a Covid measure but a punishment for going abroad to a red zone country,” the MUMN said.

They said that such measures are unacceptable since they constrain one’s life, and also because travel is not always done for pleasure – and also mentioned that persons with special needs were not exempted from such “punishment, which shows how insensitive the authorities have become.”

“What is even worse is that, although the person has to pay €100 daily, the service in these hotels is far from acceptable,” the MUMN added.

Opposition Leader Bernard Grech reacted to the announcement made by Fearne.

Grech said that forcing Maltese residents to spend €1,400 to quarantine in a hotel when they have alternative accommodation is draconian and excessive.

“No other EU state is doing this,” Grech said.

“The move is also being challenged from a human rights perspective. If the court case is successful, Maltese taxpayers will likely have to pay moral damages over and above refunds.”

“Besides changing this policy, as Chris Fearne has pledged to do following pressure from the Opposition, we also expect an immediate refund to all those Maltese residents who have been forced into such a situation. The government must stop issuing rules that cannot stand up to human rights scrutiny and that leave the taxpayer exposed.”