As COVID-19 cases continue to surge and the number of exposure sites explodes, Victoria’s contact tracing system is failing.
Exposure sites are taking too long to be listed due to a broken contact tracing system, people are not being contacted by the Department of Health despite using QR code check-ins, and it’s taking days for some people to be contacted when they’ve been at an exposure site.
The Chief Health Officer, Professor Brett Sutton, told a parliamentary inquiry in November last year that the contact tracing system would struggle to provide timely information and identify all close contacts once there were more than 200 cases per day.
Professor Sutton said, “I am very confident that we are not going to get to 200 cases.”
Today, Victoria recorded 510 new locally acquired cases.
Despite the Andrews Labor Government spending millions of dollars on upgrading the contact tracing system last year, contact tracers are overwhelmed and Victorians are paying the price.
The Premier continues to use a stick against Victorians because his government has failed to prepare for even the most basic pandemic responses.
Victorians need hope and a clear plan forward, and it’s time Daniel Andrews stopped blaming Victorians for his own government’s failures.
Comments attributable to Shadow Minister for Health, Georgie Crozier:
“18 months into the pandemic, the Andrews Labor Government has had ample time to prepare for the inevitable surge in COVID-19 cases. Instead, what we see is a contact tracing system in disarray and the government ducking for cover.
“After spending billions of dollars on the COVID-19 pandemic response, it’s unclear what Labor has actually done to prepare for a surge in COVID-19 cases. Contact tracing is a mess and thousands of promised ICU beds are nowhere to be seen.
“Victorians continue to be let down due to the unpreparedness and mismanagement by the Andrews Labor Government.”