COVID-19 testing clinics and laboratories in NSW are being overwhelmed by demand, driving up the time taken to process tests and delaying diagnoses. Healthcare workers exposed to COVID-19 in New South Wales will be able to leave isolation and return to work after seven days instead of 14 under new guidelines. NSW Health has moved to reduce the time healthcare …

One good thing can be said about 2021: it wasn’t as tumultuous as 2020, which put in a claim to be the worst year ever. That, however, may be damning with faint praise. Yes, the past twelve months did bring some good news. Indeed, for a moment in early summer it seemed that COVID-19 was in the rearview mirror. However, it isn’t. And 2021 …

Australia’s Chief Medical Officer has warned the country can expect even more COVID-19 cases after the majority of the nation’s leaders broadly agreed to relax close contact definitions and isolation requirements. As the nation’s daily cases surpassed 21,000, Prime Minister Scott Morrison convened an emergency national cabinet meeting to recalibrate Australia’s response to the highly transmissible Omicron variant sweeping the …

COVID-19 testing clinics and laboratories in NSW are being overwhelmed by demand, driving up the time taken to process tests and delaying diagnoses. Healthcare workers exposed to COVID-19 in New South Wales will be able to leave isolation and return to work after seven days instead of 14 under new guidelines. NSW Health has moved to reduce the time healthcare …

NSW records 6,288 and no deaths There were 6,288 new COVID-19 infections recorded in NSW in the 24 hours to 8pm on Friday. The state recorded no deaths, with 388 patients in hospital with the virus. There are 52 people currently in intensive care, one less than the previous day. NSW has also reported 95 per cent of residents aged 16 and …

NSW records 6,288 and no deaths There were 6,288 new COVID-19 infections recorded in NSW in the 24 hours to 8pm on Friday. The state recorded no deaths, with 388 patients in hospital with the virus. There are 52 people currently in intensive care, one less than the previous day. NSW has also reported 95 per cent of residents aged 16 and …

Masking wearing indoors will become mandatory in NSW from midnight tonight as the state government reintroduces restrictions to curb the Omicron wave. Premier Dominic Perrottet has announced density limits of one person per 2 square metres for hospitality venues would also be reinstated from December 27, while QR code measures will be “back in a limited way”. The mask and …

Federal Opposition leader Anthony Albanese has ridiculed Health Minister Greg Hunt for announcing Covid booster jabs will be brought forward for Australians, a day after criticising the Labor leader for suggesting it. On Friday morning Mr Hunt announced that the Covid-19 booster shot interval will be brought forward from five to four months from January 4, and shorten again to a three-month …

Chinese police officers and equipment will soon be sent to Solomon Islands to help defuse months of civil unrest, a move that is already causing anxiety for Australian officials. On Thursday Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare’s besieged government announced it would accept Beijing’s offer of assistance to strengthen its anti-riot policing capabilities. In a statement the government said it was “mindful of …

People all over Sydney are facing huge waits at COVID testing centres and some are even being turned away as case numbers continue to climb. NSW recorded 2,213 new infections — the state’s highest ever daily total. The soaring case numbers and testing requirements for interstate travel are causing huge queues at many testing clinics, and some people are being forced to wait …