Fortnight pass mark required for ships

ALL ships departing China have been told they must pass a 14-day period before they can berth in Tasmania, in a raft of new measures introduced to protect the state from coronavirus.

TasPorts has confirmed it implemented a number of new precautionary measures this month at its ports for vessels transiting from or through China.

In addition to the 14-day quarantine period at sea, all China-based crew members must now stay on-board at berth and all vessels must supply information to TasPorts relating to the health of their crew and passengers while continuously monitoring them for signs of illness.

TasPorts has also supplied stocks of masks, glasses, gloves, personal hand sanitiser and sanitising wet wipes to operational staff, while “robust processing arrangements” have been put in place for anyone required to go aboard the ship for work.

TasPorts executive general manager corporate affairs Kate Dean said the new measures were on top of those already being enforced by the Department of Health and Australian Border Protection at ports nationally.

Meanwhile, general practitioners are furious they are not being paid for triaging patients who ring to discuss symptoms and have faced weeks of confusion trying to figure out which guidelines they should follow.

RACGP chief Dr Harry Nespolon said it was time for a single centralised, national body dispensing information, rather than advice from the state and territory health agencies.