This was published 4 years ago
Coronavirus circulating in the US in January, Australian travel ban too late
By Eryk Bagshaw
Australia should have put a travel ban on the United States and forced return travellers into hotel quarantines in February, medical and economic experts say, as the US races ahead of Italy and China to become the largest centre of coronavirus cases in the world.
The US is responsible for twice as many imported infections into Australia as any other country. More than 85,000 Australian citizens return from short trips to the US every month and up to 70,000 US citizens visit here, the third highest rate in either category according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
On the advice of chief medical officers, the Morrison government resisted putting a travel ban on its most important ally until it sealed off Australia from the entire world, more than a week after it put a ban on Italy on March 11. It had cut off China in January and Iran in February before adding South Korea on March 5. The official US caseload had risen from 74 to 3,500 in the two weeks before the world-wide ban was implemented. It now stands at 103,942.
President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Scott Morrison last year. Credit: Bloomberg
One Australian woman who caught coronavirus while on holiday at the US ski-resort of Aspen unknowingly infected at least six people at 21st birthday party in Melbourne on March 14. Australia did not have a mandatory self-isolation period for travellers returning from the US at the time and the woman did not test positive until after the party.
Infectious disease specialist and Australian National University professor Peter Collignon said there was widespread infection in the United States that went unrecognised for six weeks.
"I think they have had virus circulating in the US since the middle of January," he said.
"On the data that was available at the time it would have been better in retrospect had Australia have done it a bit earlier. The US had low levels of testing so the cases weren't being diagnosed but it was a false number."
Professor Collignon said the deaths of residents in a Washington nursing home in February was a sign there was wider community spread than was publicly being recognised.
"Italy appeared to have many more cases than the US at the time," he said.
Travellers from the US were formally banned by the Morrison government when a worldwide ban was implemented on March 15. All Australian residents returning home were also forced into self-isolation for two weeks from their date of arrival.
"The reason [the government] went worldwide is when it's all through Europe and all through America [chief medical officers] would have advised we have to go everywhere," he said.
John Daley, the chief executive of the Grattan Institute said a major mistake was made between three and four weeks ago when people who returned to Australia on cruise ships or through the nation's airports were effectively allowed to go back into the community.
"They should have all been put into quarantine in special hotels and kept there for at least a fortnight.
"There would have been a cost to that ... but it would have been way lower than what we have now," he said.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced on Friday that all returning travellers would now be forced into quarantine in hotels as soon as they land in Australia.
The measures, which come into effect from midnight on Saturday, will see the military and state police forces patrol hallways to ensure up to 7000 Australians returning home each day are isolated for the two week quarantine period.
"Two-thirds of the cases that we currently have are from an Australian who has come home," said Mr Morrison.
The Defence Force will also help police patrol suburbs to ensure people who have landed prior to the compulsory hotel measures being introduced are following self-isolation orders and staying home.
With Shane Wright