Face masks could become mandatory again across Australia as a looming ‘Covid and flu crisis’ is reportedly threatening to bring the nation to a standstill.
Around 250,000 Australians have ‘tested’ positive for Covid in the past week. Some states have recorded more than 8,000 cases in the past 24 hours.
NSW recorded the most infections with 61,000 this week while over 50,000 people tested positive for the virus in Victoria. Well if they must keep testing….
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The figures are expected to get even worse in the coming weeks as Australia’s winter chill arrives and the new, highly infectious Omricon strain BA.5 becomes dominant. And the people continue to test for it…
The Mail Online reports: Australia is also now facing a double whammy with rising cases of the flu making this winter the worst influenza outbreak in years, causing chaos in the workforce.
Now Queensland is tipped to be the first to bring back mask mandates in a bid to stem the tidal wave of infection.
Queensland’s Chief Health Officer Dr John Gerrard revealed there had been ongoing talks with his interstate colleagues about mask mandates returning.
‘I can say that nationally, there is increasing pressure,’ he told 4BC’s Peter Fegan.
‘There is a school of thought that we should be mandating masks again.’
Hundreds of thousands of workers are likely to be forced to stay home during the next month, adding to the crippling staff shortages smashing many businesses nationwide.
Influenza case data from the Health Department showed that the weekly figures have already gone past the five-year average and hit more than 147,000 this season.
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk had celebrated the lifting of almost all mask rules earlier this year with an awkward slow-motion video on social media showing her ripping off her mask.
But it now looks like the celebrations may have been premature and short-lived – and may affect other states too. (whats the betting it’ll affect other countries as well?)
