Paul Osborne
(Australian Associated Press)

DOCTORS PROPOSE BORDER PLAN

The Australian Medical Association is asking national cabinet to improve hotel quarantine and establish long-term facilities to allow international travel to restart.

• Doctors and business groups say Australia can’t keep its international border closed forever
• COVID-19 continues to spread internationally, including into Australia
• The AMA says once an adequate proportion of the population is vaccinated, borders should be progressively opened to other countries
• National cabinet should strengthen hotel quarantine including improved ventilation, better personal protective equipment and vaccinations
• An urgent stocktake of facilities (outside of hotel quarantine) is needed to see what can be repurposed and used to take incoming arrivals
• Existing proposals for quarantine facilities should be fast-tracked
• A national partnership and funding agreement between the federal and state governments is needed to establish longer-term dedicated quarantine facilities

* Public hospitals should get funding to boost their surge capacity to deal with outbreaks, as well as keeping up with ongoing growth in demand for services.