Highlights
- Australian authorities have changed their guidelines regarding quarantine for international travelers with the emergence of new highly-contagious strains of COVID-19.
- Travellers in quarantine, international students and others affected by Australia’s border policy are complaining about concessions handed to tennis players and other high-profile individuals.
- The Communicable Diseases Network of Australia updated its guidelines noting that anyone who tests positive for the mutant UK strain should be quarantined for the full 14 days, from the onset of symptoms.
Unlike his girlfriend and travel partner, who spent 14 days in hotel quarantine after returning from the United States, as he continues to test positive for COVID-19 while in quarantine.
His situation has raised suspicion that he could be among the people who continue to shed the virus well after the infectious period.
That was the case for American tennis star , who was allowed by health authorities to travel to Melbourne for the Australian Open, despite testing positive for COVID-19.
His medical evaluations showed that although his body was still shedding the virus, he did not represent a risk of contagion.
But Miller does not have the freedom or opportunity to undergo the same medical tests to show that he no longer represents a biosecurity risk, says Dr Sara Carrillo, an expert in public health policies at Monash University.
As a result, she fears that people in the same position as Miller may have to remain in quarantine indefinitely.
Dr Carrillo, who is in hotel quarantine in Melbourne after returning from Spain, says these are some of the “inconsistencies” in the treatment of international travellers, which is leading to anger over "concessions" handed to a limited few.
“People are angry because normal people don't have access to these medical evaluations. There are people who have been in quarantine for more than three weeks and do not know when they will be allowed to leave," Dr Carrillo says.
PCR tests
Currently, an international traveller who wants to return to Australia has to test negative for a Polymeric Chain Reaction (PCR) test, which detects the genetic material of a pathogen or microorganism such as the novel coronavirus.
If they do not test negative, "they simply stay grounded without the possibility of having health officials examine their case history, and if they are really infectious or not," Dr Carrillo explains.
Medical experts like Dr Stephen Duckett questions the decision to perform pre-flight PCR tests.
“I think it's not a bad idea to test people before they fly. But simply introducing the idea of a test is not enough. You have to know what you plan to do with that information and consider the consequences of that test,” Dr Duckett said to the ABC.
“So if you test a person before flying, are you going to deny them the right to fly if they register as infectious? What if you take another test and it says they have been infected with COVID in the past? What are you going to do with that particular information? Will that change if they go into quarantine or not?”
Regulation changes
The changed the criteria regarding quarantine exit for people who have a positive PCR reading during quarantine, following the detection of the new UK strain of COVID-19 in this country.
Dr Carrillo says the changes have not been passed on.
“That is not being communicated to those of us in quarantine. Right now, I just found a guide that was published on January 12 on this matter, but none of this has been communicated to the group of people who are affected,” Dr Carrillo stresses.
“For example, but they don't say how long the genomic analysis will take. If that is added to the days they remain in quarantine, because in principle they are 14 more days, once you have a positive PCR inside the hotel.”
A spokesperson from the Australian Department of Health tells SBS Spanish the purpose of the COVID-19 National Guidelines is to “Provide nationally consistent advice and guidance to public health units in responding to a notifiable disease event.”
“These guidelines capture the knowledge of experienced professionals, built on past research efforts, and provide advice on best practice based upon the best available evidence at the time of publication. This includes specific criteria for the release from isolation for people that have tested positive for COVID-19."
The spokesperson added that based on the expert medical advice, “Travel restrictions and mandatory quarantine with COVID-19 testing at frequent intervals is considered a reasonable risk mitigation strategy as a traveller who is incubating COVID-19 and therefore may not have tested positive to a COVID-19 test before entering/departing Australia will not pose a risk to the community both in Australia and abroad.
“Hotel quarantine arrangements, including testing and cost of hotel quarantine, are predominately a matter for state and territories governments as each jurisdiction is responsible for managing the COVID-19 response under its public health legislation.”
SBS Spanish contacted Victorian quarantine officials but received no response.
'Viral elimination can be prolonged in certain people'
Australian authorities, who have also changed health protocols for entry to Australia of overseas travellers, argue that people like Jake Miller and others like him will have to remain in quarantine for longer as a result of the appearance of new strains of the most contagious viruses.
The updated its guidelines noting that anyone who tests positive for the mutant UK strain should be quarantined for the full 14 days from the onset of symptoms.
"It is important to note that some people may still have traces of the virus for a long time, so we will use a panel of experts to ensure that we are not releasing cases that are infectious and will require more intensive testing if someone remains positive for PCR," NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant told the ABC.
But for Dr Carrillo, the Australian precautions are not in line with the guidelines set by the World Health Organization, therefore people like Jake Miller should be eligible to exit quarantine.
"According to the criteria of the World Health Organization, after 10 days or three more days without symptoms, someone can be allowed to come out of quarantine or isolation."
Dr Carrillo says when considering the relaxation in relation to quarantine cases such as Miller's, one must consider the "Harmful effect of isolation on the health and well-being of the person", as well as the fact that "viral elimination can be prolonged in certain people."
“That is why they have allowed tennis player Tennys Sandgren to enter Australia because the health authorities have evaluated his history and have realised that he is surely eliminating the virus, but he is not contagious, because he had the infection at the end of November or December.”
'Double standards'
While tens of thousands of Australians continue to wait to be able to return to the country and obtain a place within the limited number available in hotel quarantine, tennis players set to take part in the Australian Open continue to attract attention due to their complaints about having to enter quarantine, some even saying that they were unaware that they would have to quarantine for two weeks if a positive case was presented on the plane to Australia.
Serbian player Novak Djokovic came under fire for sending a letter to Tennis Australia listing , including moving players to private houses with a court to train.
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews , saying, "there's no special treatment here".
Tennis star Novak Djokovic is seen on the balcony of hotel quarantine accommodation in North Adelaide Source: AAP
However, Australian authorities have allowed some celebrities, including Nicole Kidman, senior executives, and former politicians like Tony Abbott, to leave and enter Australia without hassle, as well as quarantine in their own homes.
Tens of thousands of Australians, especially those who have been stranded abroad, and Victorians who were unable to return home following the sudden closure of interstate borders during the New Year period, as well as travellers who are currently in quarantine, have turned to social media to vent their frustrations about these inequalities.
There is also frustration among the more than 100,000 international students who have been stranded since the closure of international borders in Australia last March.
They have not been able to return to Australian classrooms because, among the arguments used to prevent their return, is that "there are not enough places" for them to quarantine in hotels or student residences.
Many of those affected describe the situation as a "double standard" and denounce the great discrepancies between the considerations and the concessions that the Australian authorities grant to athletes and celebrities who enter Australia, versus the treatment that is given to ordinary citizens.
"That's a shock, isn't it?"
“Because if there is no capacity in the hotels, then there is no capacity in the hotels for anyone, but for some there is, and for others not. So it's expected that people are calling for a boycott of the Australian Open,” Carrillo concludes.
