Morrison Rejects Calls For Extra Health Measures Saying Australians Are Dying With, And Not Of Covid

Scott Morrison has dismissed calls for Australia to reinstate restrictions amid escalating rates of Covid transmission and fatalities.

Suggesting that many Australians are dying with, and not of Covid, Morrison said on Wednesday that he would continue to follow medical advice and the government’s “winter preparedness plan”.

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Morrison added that in terms of booster shots and the general population, “the medical advice has not been to extend fourth doses”.

His claim comes despite the high number of Covid cases being reported around the nation, Morrison has spruiked since April that the “pandemic has now passed” as Australians are now “living with Covid”.

“We are living with Covid, and not going back to those daily press conferences of people talking about Covid every day and putting the threat of shutdowns and lockdowns and interfering in people’s lives again,” Morrison said.

It comes as Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews advises that there are no plans to reintroduce masks in the state, despite pressure from the Australian Medical Association encouraging people to voluntarily wearing masks in indoor settings.

Meanwhile, Covid cases and hospitalisations across Australia and New Zealand look like this:

Western Australia 

• New cases: 16,253
• Covid-related deaths: 3
• Hospital and ICU admissions: 327 / 12

Northern Territory 

• New cases: 349
• Covid-related deaths: 0
• Hospital and ICU admissions: 25 / 2

Australian Capital Territory 

• New cases: 1,098   
• Covid-related deaths: 0
• Hospital and ICU admissions: 74 / 4 

Queensland 

• New cases: 7,082
• Covid-related deaths: 7
• Hospital and ICU admissions: 511 / 16

New South Wales 

• New cases: 12,297
• Covid-related deaths: 14
• Hospital and ICU admissions: 1,395 / 57

Victoria 

• New cases: 14,220
• Covid-related deaths: 22
• Hospital and ICU admissions: 510 / 31

South Australia 

• New cases: 4,072
• Covid-related deaths: 6
• Hospital and ICU admissions: 247 / 10

Tasmania 

• New cases: 1,179
• Covid-related deaths: 1
• Hospital and ICU admissions: 45 / 1

New Zealand 

• New cases: 9,570
• Covid-related deaths: 32
• Hospital and ICU admissions: 425 / 9

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