Australia was sailing quite comfortably through the COVID storm until a month ago. Being surrounded on all sides by deep oceans helped. It also had strong border controls, and a firm policy for keeping infectious diseases out. And then along came a new variant that dented its record. Did Omicron catch Australians by surprise?
Were Australians More Interested in Chilling on Beaches
Australia goes into holiday mode starting the Christmas break, and continuing until Australia Day on January 26. Most of nation’s COVID-19 infections occurred during this period. The focus was on relaxation and fun, until Omicron caused a shortage of forklift drivers responsible for keeping retail stocked.
The worker absenteeism rate currently floats around 10% according to CNN World on January 24, 2022. However, the mortality rate is thankfully a low 3,000 fatalities, thanks to a firm government response. It shut borders, imposed lengthy lockdowns and promoted vaccines even more keenly.
Did Omicron Catch the Government by Surprise
Australians were justifiably peeved when their government imposed those measures, despite 90% having their vaccines. ‘Omicron has been one of the biggest [surprises]in challenging and pretty much turning on its head the way we’d been managing the pandemic up until that point,’ prime minister Scott Morrison remarked.
The net result is Australia fell seriously short of rapid antigen test kits. The Pharmacy Guild of Australia representing 5,700 community pharmacies reported its members were fielding four inquiries a minute. ‘This is simply not sustainable,’ guild president Chris Freeman said in a statement.
Meanwhile, as we can see from the graph the situation is gradually returning to normal. However, some food stock-outs exist as the nation holds its breath for the return to work after Australia Day. We can’t begin to dream of a post COVID era, while break outs like this are still possible.
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