Be vigilant call after case No.7

KASEY WILKINS and DAVID KILLICK

WHILE Tasmania’s coronavirus infections continue to grow, community transmission is not yet an issue.

On Sunday, Tasmania’s sixth and seventh coronavirus cases were confirmed.

Health Minister Sarah Courtney said the seventh case, announced about 11pm Sunday, was a woman in her 50s who was being kept in isolation in a stable condition.

“This case was identified as a close contact through Public Health investigation of a previous Tasmanian case who had recently travelled overseas,” she said.

“The case was aboard a privately chartered yacht for more than 24 hours with a person who later tested positive.”

The woman’s close contacts, including the other people aboard the yacht, have been identified, contacted and will be required to self-isolate for 14 days.

“This is Tasmania’s seventh case of coronavirus. Of the remaining cases, five cases are stable and remain in isolation receiving medical care, another case has been discharged from hospital,” she said.

“All cases are directly linked to people or involve people who arrived in Tasmania from overseas. There is no evidence of transmission within our community outside of these cases.”

However, she said we should all “remain vigilant”.

Labor leader Rebecca White said the State Government should secure hotel rooms left vacant by the coronavirus crisis to house frontline health workers.

She said the move would provide safe accommodation for workers exposed to the virus, protect their families from exposure and serve as an economic stimulus for the hospitality industry.

Labor is urging the Government to ramp up its response to the crisis by:

ENSURING health workers have access to adequate personal protection such as gowns, masks and gloves. EXPANDING services so regional centres can offer testing to people with symptoms. PROVIDING early advice of likely decisions such as school closures, to give people time to make arrangements. IMPLEMENTING testing at state borders, air and sea ports. PROCURING vacant hotel rooms to provide a safe and secure place for homeless people to self-isolate.

“There are lots of questions being raised by those who work in the health sector, about how they are supposed to self-isolate and while they’re working and how they’re supposed to stop the spread of the disease to their loved ones,’’ she said. “The Labor Party has already spoken to the Government about this and asked them to consider utilising the unused hotel rooms right across Hobart, Launceston and Burnie and other centres close to our hospitals and health centres.”

Greens MP Rosalie Woodruff said the Government needed to do more to protect the state.

Anyone who develops respiratory symptoms within 14 days of returning from overseas should self-quarantine and call the Public Health Hotline on 1800 671 738 or contact their GP.

For more information about the virus, visit health.tas.gov.au/ coronavirus or call the National Coronavirus Health Information Line on 1800 020 080.