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Speaker 1: Hello, Katie Wolf and three point sixty online at Mix

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Speaker 1: one O four nine dot com.

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Speaker 2: As I've mentioned throughout the morning, in addition to Greater

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Speaker 2: Melbourne and the local government area of Bendigo, the acting

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Speaker 2: Chief Health Officer has declared the remainder of the state

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Speaker 2: of Victoria to be a COVID nineteen hotspot for the

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Speaker 2: purpose of travel into the territory, effective from noon today.

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Speaker 2: Now joining me on the line is the Health Minister

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Speaker 2: at Tasha Files.

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Speaker 1: Good morning, Good morning. We'll be good morning with its minister.

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Speaker 2: What is the latest advice for those who are traveling

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Speaker 2: in from Victoria from midday?

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Speaker 3: So the Chief Health Officer has declared Regional Victoria as

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Speaker 3: of midday today will be a hotspot and that means

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Speaker 3: people need to enter mandatory quarantine if they arrive in

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Speaker 3: the northern territory after that point. This is in correlation, Katie,

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Speaker 3: to Victoria easing some of its restrictions in Regional Victoria.

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Speaker 3: The Chief Health Officer fields that we need to up

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Speaker 3: this to keep territory and safe, so that's why he's

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Speaker 3: made that decision.

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Speaker 1: Okay, how many are we expecting?

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Speaker 2: Believe that there is at least one flight that's arriving

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Speaker 2: about twelve fifteen today, Is that right?

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Speaker 3: So, Katie, this decision is made because Victoria is easing

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Speaker 3: their restrictions from midnight tonight, so we're bringing in our

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Speaker 3: restrictions from noon today. I do understand that there is

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Speaker 3: a flight that will arrive around lunchtime, but these decisions

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Speaker 3: aren't made on flight schedules. They're made on the clinical advice,

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Speaker 3: and that is a clear correlation. They're using their restrictions.

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Speaker 3: The Chechoe thinks that that's an increased risk to us,

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Speaker 3: and so he's making the whole of Victoria a hot

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Speaker 3: spot for the purposes of quarantine.

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Speaker 2: But essentially, if you do arrive at twelve fifteen today

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Speaker 2: on that flight, well you're going to have to follow

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Speaker 2: the hot spot declaration.

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Speaker 3: Correct, Katie. If that flight does arrive afternoon today, then

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Speaker 3: that's what will happen. We also are encouraging anyone that's

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Speaker 3: seen in Victoria going back to the twelves of May,

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Speaker 3: so please keep checking every day both the Northern Territory

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Speaker 3: and Victorian healths websites because the information is changing, particularly

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Speaker 3: around those Tier one locations. As they do more contact

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Speaker 3: tracing work, they're identifying more locations, So anyone who's been

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Speaker 3: interstate in Victoria and there's a few locations in coastal

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Speaker 3: southern New South Wales, please keep checking the website.

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Speaker 2: And do we have any idea at this point in

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Speaker 2: time how many people we've currently got in Howard Springs.

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Speaker 3: Firstly, O Katie, I understand that the numbers in Howard

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Speaker 3: Springs are around nine hundred international repatriations and around four

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Speaker 3: hundred domestic and in Central Australia we have around sixty

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Speaker 3: people in the Todd's facility in our springs.

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Speaker 2: Right, is that thirteen hundred one of the higher numbers

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Speaker 2: that we've seen out there at the facility, O.

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Speaker 3: Katie, I would have to go back and look at

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Speaker 3: the numbers. We certainly had many hundreds at some point

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Speaker 3: last year when we had a number of jurisdictions locked down,

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Speaker 3: So we certainly it's a number that we're very comfortable

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Speaker 3: with in managing them, the international and domestic being kept

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Speaker 3: well separate, so there's no concerns from us there.

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Speaker 2: A question which we do keep getting asked by listeners

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Speaker 2: is how many staff have now been recruited for that

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Speaker 2: Howard Springs facility.

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Speaker 3: Katie, I don't have the figure in front of me exactly,

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Speaker 3: but I understand it's over three hundred and fifty staff.

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Speaker 3: But I'm happy to take that on notice and provide

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Speaker 3: some information through. But my understanding is for the approach

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Speaker 3: of both international and domestic, there's adequate staffing.

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Speaker 2: Okay, so more than three hundred and fifty staff at

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Speaker 2: this point in time out there at Howard Springs.

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Speaker 3: Going from my memory's figure that I saw earlier in

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Speaker 3: the week.

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Speaker 2: Yes, Now, obviously I'm assuming that we do still have

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Speaker 2: quite a few people in self isolation. Do we have

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Speaker 2: any idea of the numbers of those.

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Speaker 3: So the advice I had is it was a very

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Speaker 3: small number that had been to those Pier one locations

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Speaker 3: and that were caught up having to stay in isolation.

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Speaker 3: So there was of course initially anyone who'd been in

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Speaker 3: Victoria needed to get tested and get a negative test,

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Speaker 3: and it was just those high risk locations where they

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Speaker 3: had to stay for the full fourteen days. But it's

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Speaker 3: just a handful of people, Katie. We saw territories respond,

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Speaker 3: we saw thousands of people tested, and we saw health

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Speaker 3: respond with increased particularly after wed he spoke last week,

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Speaker 3: increased testing facility.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, Now, I do want to talk about our road borders.

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Speaker 2: We just caught up with John Patterson from AMSANT. He's

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Speaker 2: concerned about there not being police or health authorities or

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Speaker 2: health officials on those borders, particularly the Queensland and South

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Speaker 2: Australia border.

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Speaker 1: Do we need to take another look at this?

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Speaker 3: So I've been in contact with the Police Commissioner this

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Speaker 3: morning and he's certainly watching this very carefully. He's comfortable presently,

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Speaker 3: but he's regularly assessing the situation and will act if

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Speaker 3: he believes it's necessary. We also need to remember, Katie,

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Speaker 3: that there's a border between Victoria and South Australia, so

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Speaker 3: Victoria's and lockdown people can't leave their home for those

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Speaker 3: Apart from those five reasons, then there's measures to stop

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Speaker 3: people entering South Australia, and then there's the border form

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Speaker 3: and the automatic number plate recognition on the territory border.

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Speaker 3: So the Police Commission is comfortable, but he is actively

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Speaker 3: reviewing this and if he needs to make changes he

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Speaker 3: will Okay.

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Speaker 2: The opposition says that they believe health officials should be

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Speaker 2: on our borders during hotspot lockdowns. This would ensure there's

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Speaker 2: no confusion for people entering the tier tree from hot

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Speaker 2: spots and lessens any possible weak lenks which could potentially

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Speaker 2: lead to community transmission. I mean the risks are high

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Speaker 2: here in the sense that you know, you've always said

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Speaker 2: all it takes is one case, and I guess that

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Speaker 2: is the concern, is that one person does cross the

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Speaker 2: border and we end up with COVID in the community.

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Speaker 2: I mean, could we look at having public health officials

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Speaker 2: on the borders.

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Speaker 3: I'm not going to take my advice from the opposition

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Speaker 3: who would have opened our borders back in June last year.

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Speaker 1: Well, you guys, dido open the borders back then.

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Speaker 2: You did open the borders, So I think that that

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Speaker 2: argument's sort of null and void. What I'm asking is

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Speaker 2: do you think that we should have public health officials

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Speaker 2: on the borders.

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Speaker 3: So what I can say is the information I just said,

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Speaker 3: the police Commissioner is making these decisions based on the

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Speaker 3: health advice, and I'll listen to that and we'll act

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Speaker 3: on that. The nestic travel is not what it used

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Speaker 3: to be KD. Each jurisdiction has border farm people know

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Speaker 3: that to enter a jurisdiction they need to fill in

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Speaker 3: that paperwork. But the police commissioner if he needs to

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Speaker 3: just flow those resources. He will, but right now on

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Speaker 3: the advice that he's got, he's comfortable and he's actively

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Speaker 3: watching the situation.

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Speaker 2: I We'll just ask that question again though, because I'm

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Speaker 2: not asking right now. I'm not asking about whether the

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Speaker 2: police should be on the borders. What I'm asking is

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Speaker 2: whether we should maybe look at a different approach and

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Speaker 2: whether having a public health officials on the borders is

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Speaker 2: an option.

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Speaker 3: So, Katie, this pandemic and the emergency management has relied

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Speaker 3: on resources from both public and environmental health, from police

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Speaker 3: as well as administrative people to support these around the borders.

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Speaker 3: It is crossing the borders and making sure that we

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Speaker 3: have those border forms and we have that information. It

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Speaker 3: is a direction to fill in a border entry form

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Speaker 3: to enter the NOTHERN territory and we have the automatic

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Speaker 3: number FLATE recognition. So No, the decision is from the

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Speaker 3: police Commissioner and he believes that the information is adequately

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Speaker 3: being collected and he is watching that situation closely.

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Speaker 2: Okay, I've got a message from a listener here. It says, Katie,

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Speaker 2: can you please ask the Minister of the flights from

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Speaker 2: Delhi that are heading to Purse and not to Darwin

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Speaker 2: because we don't have enough staff to accommodate them.

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Speaker 3: Okay, I'm not aware about change. I understand there is

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Speaker 3: a quantous flight between Darwin and each team or team

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Speaker 3: or left, and those flights there is capacity how it

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Speaker 3: brings to accommodate the breakdown is, Katie, we've got around

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Speaker 3: six hundred people who are international, vulnerable Australians being orpatriated

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Speaker 3: through the DEFAT program, and there's a couple of one

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Speaker 3: hundred people that are international. There's some of the oil

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Speaker 3: rig workers and also those flights out a team or

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Speaker 3: left and some of the quantious crew broken.

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Speaker 2: This one, this one though, is is apparently there's flights

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Speaker 2: from Delhi that are heading to Perth so rather than Darwin.

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Speaker 1: Do you know if that's yeah.

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Speaker 3: No, misunderstood you Delly to Delhi. No, my understanding, we

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Speaker 3: have worked with the Commonwealth around that DEFAT and taking

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Speaker 3: those flights. We've got the capacity where accepting a flight

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Speaker 3: each week. The common West government's working with all jurisdictions

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Speaker 3: to try and get these vulnerable Australians home. But no,

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Speaker 3: that's not my understanding is that that flight was changed

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Speaker 3: because of our capacity issues.

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Speaker 1: Okay, so do we have enough staff for more flights?

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Speaker 3: So, Katie, as I just pointed to the latest staffing

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Speaker 3: figure that I've forgot, is that we do have the

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Speaker 3: staff to provide the quarantining for those international appatriation flights.

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Speaker 3: What I can say, Katie is that it has gifted

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Speaker 3: in terms of internationally. Initially there was a significant demand

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Speaker 3: out of Europe and those flights the numbers of people

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Speaker 3: wanting to get on those flights as e SO defacts

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Speaker 3: now working through other locations where vulnerable Australians might be

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Speaker 3: caught up.

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Speaker 1: All right.

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Speaker 2: One of the other questions, or one of the other

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Speaker 2: things that we've had raised with us on a number

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Speaker 2: of occasions over the last few days, is this situation

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Speaker 2: at the Quest in Burrama. Now, apparently a number of

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Speaker 2: people have booked hotel rooms at the Quest in Burrama,

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Speaker 2: but they've had those canceled. It's been revealed in the

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Speaker 2: paper today that NT Health have booked the rooms out there.

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Speaker 1: Is that the case, so, Katie.

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Speaker 3: Northern Territory Health books accommodation right across the Northern Territory.

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Speaker 3: I don't have the specifics operationally of what they haven't

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Speaker 3: have it booked that would be extremely frustrating for people.

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Speaker 3: If you've booked accommodation, you think in place. But that's

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Speaker 3: a question for the operator of that accommodation.

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Speaker 1: So but I mean, have nt Health booked out the

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Speaker 1: whole hotel?

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Speaker 3: I'm not aware of that detail, Katie. We book accommodation

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Speaker 3: right across the territory, whether it's for people going out

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Speaker 3: to remote areas visiting specialists that come into our urban

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Speaker 3: centers such as Darwin and Ala Springs. But that is

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Speaker 3: a question for the operators of that facility why they've

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Speaker 3: canceled people's booking is there?

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Speaker 2: I mean, are you though booking those hotel rooms for

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Speaker 2: staff out at Howard Springs.

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Speaker 3: Katie, We book accommodation right across the territory. I'm not

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Speaker 3: going to operationally get into the ins and outs of

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Speaker 3: what we book and who we book it for. We

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Speaker 3: have significant contracts across Department of Health, including for accommodation.

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Speaker 2: So you don't know whether that one out at the quest,

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Speaker 2: whether that whole hotel has been booked for staff out

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Speaker 2: at Howard Springs.

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Speaker 3: No, I'm not aware of that operational detail, nor should i, Katie.

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Speaker 3: It's not uncommon for help to book accommodation for their

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Speaker 3: staff who then provide services into the territory for a

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Speaker 3: range of reasons. I can absolutely understand the frustration of

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Speaker 3: people lissive book somewhere and then that gets canceled. But

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Speaker 3: from my perspective, that would be a question best asked

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Speaker 3: of the operators of that facility.

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Speaker 2: Well, I guess it just does seem like an awful

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Speaker 2: lot of rooms. And then when you kind of you know,

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Speaker 2: when you take your health minister hat off, I guess

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Speaker 2: and put your tourism minister hat on. It's not a

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Speaker 2: great look then for our tourists that are coming into

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Speaker 2: the Northern Territory if they've got those bookings and then

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Speaker 2: they're being canceled because the hotel rooms have been taken

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Speaker 2: by intee Health.

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Speaker 3: Katie, I've just explained, you know, from a health perspective,

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Speaker 3: we have accommodation that we access right across the territory

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Speaker 3: and a number of commercial arrangements. Absolutely that the frustration

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Speaker 3: of those people that have booked, but it would be

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Speaker 3: a question for that operator why they've made those changes,

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Speaker 3: all right.

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Speaker 2: I mean again, I just think that it's a tough one,

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Speaker 2: particularly for those out there listening. You know they'd be

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Speaker 2: wondering why the Health Department would need a whole hotel.

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Speaker 3: So Katie, the Department of Health has a range of

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Speaker 3: contracts for accommodation. You know, this is something that is

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Speaker 3: a commercial matter that we make those bookings. We do

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Speaker 3: need to respect that the private of our staff. We

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Speaker 3: have people that arrange of facilities across the territory that

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Speaker 3: are coming in to do important work, whether they're going

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Speaker 3: out bush to do that work, and we do provide

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Speaker 3: accommodation for them. That's certainly something that we deal with

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Speaker 3: each and every day.

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Speaker 1: Now, I want to talk about the check in app quickly.

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Speaker 2: We know that almost four million check ins have been

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Speaker 2: recorded six months on since the Territory checking app was launched.

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Speaker 2: We did just catch up with John Patterson from amsand

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Speaker 2: as I mentioned a little while ago, he's a bit

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Speaker 2: concerned that in some locations people are not actually using

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Speaker 2: that check in app and in some facilities, I guess

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Speaker 2: you might say around the territory that the establishments aren't

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Speaker 2: really pushing for people to actually use that.

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Speaker 1: Check in app. Does this need to be mandatory?

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Speaker 3: So kay? In terms of the mandatory aspect, every business

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Speaker 3: and organization needs to review their COVID management plan every

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Speaker 3: six months and it's a part of that COVID management

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Speaker 3: plan to have a QR code checking. It's really simple

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Speaker 3: to use, as those people that do use it understand,

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Speaker 3: and we courage everybody to make sure that they've downloaded.

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Speaker 3: You're only enter your details once. I think businesses and

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Speaker 3: organization stuff's done a great job, but this is a

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Speaker 3: timely reminder, and Katie, we need to have it in

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Speaker 3: places that are accessible and also once you've entered a

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Speaker 3: venue sometimes it's a rush to get in the door.

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Speaker 3: Have it at more locations so that you can, as

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Speaker 3: you do remember whilst you're in there, quickly enter it.

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Speaker 3: We've also seen a change, Katie. You know previously it

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Speaker 3: was if you were going to be somewhere for longer

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Speaker 3: than fifteen minutes. The virus into State has clearly shown

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Speaker 3: us that casual passing contact can see you know, transmission

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Speaker 3: of coronavirus, and so we encourage everybody wherever you are

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Speaker 3: just checking. You don't know if you'll end up staying

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Speaker 3: longer than fifteen minutes. It's a relatively easy thing to do,

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Speaker 3: but if we were to see community transmission in the territory.

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Speaker 3: That's the tool that our contact traces would use, and

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Speaker 3: we're seen into state where people haven't checked in that

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Speaker 3: it's really caused delay and getting that information.

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Speaker 2: So at the moment, is it actually mandatory to check

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Speaker 2: in or is it just something that is it's actually

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Speaker 2: you know, like you should be doing.

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Speaker 3: No, Katie's mandatory as a part of the COVID management plan.

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Speaker 3: So the show direction is that each business or organization

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Speaker 3: has that and that's their responsibility to make people check in.

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Speaker 3: So it is a bit of a tricky one, but

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Speaker 3: businesses have done a great job, and so we need

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Speaker 3: territoriums to make sure that they do the right thing

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Speaker 3: and check in.

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Speaker 2: All right, we are fast running out of time, but

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Speaker 2: I do want to very quickly ask you. It's being

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Speaker 2: reported that the Northern Territory's largest aboriginal health service is

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Speaker 2: going to cease taking new patients immediately. Danilla Dilba is

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Speaker 2: no longer going to take new patients because of what

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Speaker 2: they have said or told other media. It's due to

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Speaker 2: a lack of federal funding. They've written to the federal

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Speaker 2: health minister. I mean, is this appropriate?

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Speaker 3: So Katie primary healthcare is provided by the Commonwealth government,

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Speaker 3: whether that's through a Medicare rebate to your GP or

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Speaker 3: through arrangements with our aboriginal medical organizations. Danilla Dilberh do

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Speaker 3: an amazing job here in the top end providing that healthcare.

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Speaker 3: They have seen an increase in the number of people

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Speaker 3: seeking their services and so they're making operational decisions. We'll

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Speaker 3: work with the Commonwealth and Zanella Dilba because we know

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Speaker 3: that people need to receive primary health care so that

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Speaker 3: they can be healthy and stay out of an acute

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Speaker 3: hospital setting. So it is concerning, but we'll continue to

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Speaker 3: work with them.

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Speaker 1: Do you think they're getting enough funding.

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Speaker 3: Okatie, I'm not across their funding arrangements and it's incredibly complex,

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Speaker 3: but we certainly hear the concerns from them that they

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Speaker 3: feel that they're caring for an increase in people and

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Speaker 3: so we need to work with the Commonwealth, who have

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Speaker 3: that responsibility of providing primary health care funding to make

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Speaker 3: sure that it's adequate. But we certainly you know from

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Speaker 3: what they're saying that they've seen an increase and we

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Speaker 3: need to work through this.

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Speaker 2: All right, we are going to have to leave it

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Speaker 2: their Health Minister Natasha Files. We appreciate your time this morning.

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Speaker 3: Thank you, thank you,