Victoria COVID: State records two coronavirus deaths as modest easing of restrictions flagged smh.com.au - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from smh.com.au Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Advertisement
Perth primary school teachers, most of whom are not yet eligible to be vaccinated against COVID-19, say they are feeling anxious about schools operating during Perth’s latest snap lockdown.
It follows students not being required to attend during WA’s previous two snap lockdowns earlier this year.
Burbridge School is one of three schools closed after a positive case visited the premises.
Credit:Marta Pascual Juanola
President of the WA Primary Principals Association, Ian Anderson, said schools wanted more reassurance from authorities that students would not transmit the virus in the classroom.
He also said some were struggling for staff as the potential exposure site list from the northern suburbs cluster grew to more than 25 venues on Tuesday.
7 mins ago
Hotels flee quarantine program over brand damage
Andrew Tillett
Top hotels are pulling out of the quarantine program amid growing industry fears that the spate of recent coronavirus outbreaks leaking out via staff is causing reputational damage to operators.
At least a dozen hotels have withdrawn from the program, including Sydneyâs Five Star Hilton and InterContinental hotels, and Melbourneâs Marriott, sparking warnings an assistance package may be needed to help the sector rehabilitate its image.
As some states and epidemiologists ramp up calls for quarantine centres to be established in regional areas, Accommodation Association chief Dean Long said it was âdisrespectfulâ that Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews and others tarred hotels by attaching their name to specific clusters.
COVID-19 infection is no guarantee of lasting immunity against re-infection 03/02/2021|4min
Deakin University Chair of Epidemiology Catherine Bennett says the coronavirus situation in Brazil is a warning being infected with COVID-19 once is no guarantee of immunity, particular with the circulation of mutant variants.
“What we’re seeing in Brazil is a bit of a warning around that same concern that we’re all watching out for anyway, and that is being infected once doesn’t necessarily protect you from being infected again,” she told Sky News.
“There is good evidence now that particularly natural immunity that comes from having the virus may not be lasting so that [in] six to eight months your immune response might wane”.
Pfizer supply lines and global competition for the drug could limit Australian access to the vaccine according to Deakin University Chair of Epidemiology Catherine Bennett, who suggested a diversification strategy would be wise.
“At the moment it’s a challenge because some of the supply lines have actually been the problem for Pfizer and there is so much competition in so many countries doing it hard,” she told Sky News.
“Having a few options for us is really important”.
Ms Bennett acknowledged the difficulties of predicting which vaccines would be effective during the trial stage and admitted the government were trying to “look into a crystal ball” when the agreements were first made back in 2020.
She touted the Moderna vaccine as a possible candidate which the government could access through the COVAX scheme once it was given approval from the TGA.