Queensland has announced major changes to its border regime as the state recorded its highest daily death toll of the pandemic.
The Omicron wave has killed six people in Queensland overnight – the state’s deadliest day of the pandemic so far – as 14,914 new Covid cases were recorded.
The deaths were all people aged between their 70s and 90s, all with significant underlying conditions, taking the state’s death toll to 17.
“When you think about during the whole two years … six in one day is a big shock,” Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said.
“It‘s quite upsetting.”
None of the deaths had received booster shots, with five having had two doses of the vaccine and one being unvaccinated.
Queensland will scrap all requirements for people to cross its borders from Saturday, finally ending two years of on-and-off restrictions.
Chief health officer John Gerrard said the border rules – including the border pass system – had served their purpose, given all Queenslanders now had access to vaccines.
“And now the virus as always, as expected is spreading through Queensland, but with the vaccinated population,” he said.
“So the job has been done and then these borders are no longer required and that was my recommendation to the Premier.”
Queensland’s hardline stance on borders was often criticised by political opponents, the business community, and people who found themselves locked out by the system.
But it also kept case numbers and deaths far below the levels in NSW and Victoria during the Delta outbreak last year.
Queensland opened its border to vaccinated arrivals in December. Police who have been manning the border will now be returned to duty elsewhere, with the focus shifting to compliance with venue laws and mask wearing.
The state is, however, yet to make a decision on international arrivals despite the state being set to hit 90 per cent double-dose vaccinations next week
There are now 145,200 people in Queensland with the virus.
Hospitalisations in the past 24 hours rose slightly to 530, while there are 26 people in intensive care, down from 30. Ten people are on ventilators.
The latest daily figures include 2800 positive rapid antigen tests – down from 3985 RATs on Wednesday.
It is still at least two weeks until the virus caseload hits its peak in late January and early February as predicted by health authorities.
Thursday’s update comes as industries buckle under the pressure of staff shortages, while hesitant consumers are again avoiding heading to the shops.
Peak business bodies claim more than half of Queensland’s business community has been affected by staff shortages in some form or another in recent weeks, as isolation measures and testing requirements keep employees locked down at home.
Chamber of Commerce and Industry Queensland general manager of policy and advocacy Amanda Rohan told The Courier Mailthat businesses were at a “crunch point”, while a scarcity of rapid antigen tests was exacerbating the situation.
“CCIQ has been saying for months and long before borders reopened businesses needed clarity and certainty around access to rapid antigen testing as a first line of defence for their staff and to help them plan for workforce shortages, return to work and ongoing recovery,” Ms Rohan said.
Queensland last week confirmed it had ordered 18 million rapid antigen tests – 12 million of which will be able to be used at home – as it signalled a shift away from the more onerous PCR testing to ease pressure on the health system.
However, supply of the at-home tests has been limited to a relative trickle, with retailers also struggling to keep up with demand as RATs become increasingly crucial to isolation and testing rules.
Queensland now includes positive RATs in its daily figures, with the tests encouraged for people with symptoms as well as people who have been identified as a close contact and people who require a negative result to exit isolation.
Queensland Health Minister Yvette D’Ath on Wednesday flagged that the state would be pushing for more RATs from the federal government amid fears the inbound delivery of one million RATs will only add to pressure on public clinics.
Half of these federally supplied tests – which are expected to arrive in the next week – will be point-of-care kits requiring the supervision of health staff.
Testing kits and isolation rules are expected to be a key point of discussion during national cabinet on Thursday.
Originally published as Qld Covid: Shock figures mark state’s deadliest day
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