AMA WA calls for caution as COVID rules relaxed, State Opposition leader calls for end to vaccine mandates

Great Southern businesses breathed a sigh of relief after WA hit a milestone in its return to pre-pandemic life, but AMA WA president Mark-Duncan Smith has encouraged local residents to keep wearing masks in high-risk settings. The Great Southern recorded 164 new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday among a total of 690 active cases in the region. Cases across the region have increased slightly since a major relaxation of WA’s COVID restrictions on Friday, rising from 116 new cases and 685 active cases on the first day of the changes. Last Friday marked the removal of a raft of strict COVID restrictions, including the blanket mandate on indoor masks which had been in place in the Great Southern since the end of January. AMA WA president Dr Duncan-Smith had several concerns with last week’s changes — from the timing of it to the way it was worded. In his opinion, the restrictions have been lifted prematurely, with WA’s daily case numbers still reaching as high as 8899 last Thursday after a peak of 9754 on March 30. “I would have preferred to have seen that we were on the downhill side of the curve and I would have liked to have seen that in the regions, as well,” he said. Dr Duncan-Smith said he was interested to see whether the written advice of Chief Health Officer Andy Robertson supported the State Government’s decision. He was concerned by the State Government appearing to ignore the CHO’s written advice at the end of March, when WA’s restrictions were eased from March 31. He also questioned whether modelling had been carried out prior to last week’s changes. “If they haven’t done the modelling, the question is: what are they basing this decision on?” he said. “And it’s not following the CHO’s advice, then it’s even more alarming.” With WA’s total COVID cases numbers at about 355,000 last week, Dr Duncan-Smith said there was “a lot of COVID water still to go under that bridge”. He said it was a “natural expectation” that WA cases would rise due to the reduction of restrictions and the government had a responsibility to reintroduce them if necessary. He encouraged Great Southern residents — especially the elderly and vulnerable — to continue wearing masks in high-risk settings. “I would have preferred the Government to say that masks are now voluntary indoors,” he said. “People should not stigmatise others if they continue to wear masks, they should give them a thumbs-up because they are still reducing the transmission of COVID and they are protecting themselves.” Despite the AMA’s concerns, the State Opposition welcomed the changes as a way to alleviate some pressure on small businesses and the community. Speaking to the Herald, Opposition Leader Mia Davies called on the State Government to release a plan outlining the end of the current state of emergency and the end of COVID vaccine mandates for about 75 per cent of WA’s workforce. “It makes little sense to us as an opposition to see all of the other restrictions being removed,” she said. “So you now longer have the G2G Pass, you no longer have to check in at a licensed venue and the rationale for that is that we have a highly vaccinated population,” she said. “Why that doesn’t then apply to the workforce mandates seems nonsensical.,” It follows similar comments by Shire of Katanning president Liz Guidera last month calling for the workplace vaccination mandates to be dropped. “While I supported the State Government’s mandate for vaccinations that ensured key workers and industries would remain in operation, I see little advantage to continuing the mandates,” she said. In response to the changes to isolation requirements, the State Government will provide 10 extra free RATs to those who are confirmed to be close contacts. Health Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson encouraged the community to continue protecting themselves against COVID despite the rule changes. “During the cooler months, please make sure you stay up to date with your COVID and flu vaccinations, wear a mask as necessary, and continue to wash your hands regularly,” she said. The percentage of eligible people in the Shire of Katanning who have received more than two doses of a COVID vaccine declined again to 81.1 per cent as of Sunday. RULE CHANGES FROM MARCH 29