How the risk of New Zealand’s hotel quarantine facilities failing is three times HIGHER than it is in Australia – despite coronavirus repeatedly leaking out into the community Down Under
- University of Otago study compared risk of quarantine risk between countries
- New Zealand’s risk of failure is 13.2 for every 1,000 guests in hotel quarantine
- Meanwhile the risk in Australia is 4.1 failings for every 1,000 people isolating
The risk of hotel quarantine facilities failing to stop Covid-19 leaking into the community in New Zealand is three times higher than in Australia, according to a new study.
A study by the University of Otago found 13.2 in every 1,000 cases can be linked back to hotel quarantine failures in New Zealand.
By comparison, there are just 4.1 breaches connected to every 1,000 infections across the ditch.
The data comes despite repeated localised and state-wide lockdowns in Australia due to the virus breaching the walls of quarantine hotels.
While the risk was higher in New Zealand, the study found the country had 10 failings while Australia had 14 breaches in quarantine up to March 31 this year.
The risk of breaches causing coronavirus to seep out of hotel quarantine facilities in New Zealand is three times higher than in Australia, according to a new study (passengers arriving in Sydney Airport are pictured)
The researchers found the risks of breaches may be related to the rules imposed on guests while isolating at the hotels.
New Zealand quarantine hotels have shared recreational, smoking and exercise areas while those in Australia are confined to their rooms for the duration of their 14-day stay.
Health experts at the University of Otago said there were steps New Zealand could take to lower the risk of any potential quarantine breaches.
These include enforcing vaccination requirements and quarantine periods before travellers arrive in the country.
The country could also benefit from setting up a facility similar to the Northern Territory’s Howard Springs quarantine hub which hasn’t had a single coronavirus case leave its walls, the university researchers said.
Another major factor influencing the risks of failings is whether or not staff are vaccinated.
The study found half of New Zealand quarantine breaches could have been avoided had all frontline border workers received the jab.
Health experts at the University of Otago said there were steps New Zealand could take to lower the risk of any potential quarantine breaches like enforcing vaccination rules. Pictured are passengers wearing masks at Sydney International Airport
Since June last year more than 127,000 people have passed through Auckland’s quarantine facilities, while Australia has seen nearly double this number.
The most notable breach of hotel quarantine was in Victoria with a second wave sparking an extensive 112-day lockdown which resulted in around 800 deaths.
In Perth on Saturday authorities confirmed a hotel security guard and his two roommates tested positive to Covid-19.
The man may have been infectious in the community for four days before he tested positive, authorities say.
How the man contracted the virus has not yet been determined.
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