Queensland's COVID-19 rules have eased further after health authorities announced a change in isolation rules for household contacts and unvaccinated international travellers.
Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic more than two years ago, any household contacts who test positive to the virus have been made to undergo mandatory isolation across Queensland.
But now those isolation orders have been scrapped for asymptomatic household contacts, along with the quarantine rules for international arrivals.
Here's a break down on the latest shake-up to Queensland's COVID rules.
Who is a close contact?
You are considered a close contact of someone who has COVID-19 if:
- You are living with someone infected with the virus
- You have spent four hours or longer with someone in a home, or a health or aged-care setting since they developed COVID
Do I need to isolate if I'm a household close contact with symptoms?
Yes.
Health authorities say anyone with COVID symptoms is still required to get tested and isolate at home.
Symptoms include fever, cough, runny nose, sore throat, fatigue and loss of taste or smell.
Do I need to isolate if I'm a household close contact with no symptoms?
If you are asymptomatic, you will no longer be required to isolate for seven days.
Instead, asymptomatic close contacts will be required to test for COVID every two days.
This can be done via either a rapid antigen test (RAT) or a PCR test.
But of course, if a close contact returns a positive result on the tests, they will be required to isolate for the full seven-day period, regardless of whether they have symptoms.
Close contacts with no symptoms will also be required to wear a mask for seven days when indoors, as well as when they are unable to socially distance outdoors.
Can I go to work or school?
The Queensland government has advised close contacts to work from home for seven days if possible.
Close contacts are also required to inform their employer that they are a close contact before returning to work.
If you are a close contact who works in a vulnerable setting, such as at a hospital or aged care centre, Health Minister Yvette D'Ath said extra precautions will be taken for those workplaces.
"In vulnerable settings, we will make sure that we are still taking those additional protections around PPE and frequency of testing for our health workforce," she said.
"It will be at the discretion of the local hospitals depending on the role that those close contacts may be performing as to whether they should be in the workplace or not."
Do I need to quarantine if I'm an unvaccinated international traveller?
Not anymore.
Quarantine rules will also be scrapped for unvaccinated international arrivals.
Instead, arrivals will need to return a negative PCR or RAT within 24 hours of arriving in Queensland.
Chief Health Officer John Gerrard said although quarantine rules for international arrivals have been in place for the past two years, they were no longer required.
"Now that the virus is widespread in the Queensland community, the risk posed by international arrivals continues to decrease," Dr Gerrard said.
If international arrivals develop symptoms after testing negative, they will need to get tested again.
While many Queenslanders have already had COVID, health authorities say it's possible to catch the virus multiple times.
A spokesperson from Queensland Health said it was "unlikely to get COVID again in the 12 weeks after completing isolation."
"You are considered a 'cleared case' for 12 weeks after your isolation ends," Queensland Health said.
"During this time, if you get COVID-19 symptoms again, you do not need to get tested.
"During those 12 weeks, if someone else in your house gets COVID-19, you are not considered a close contact, and you do not need to get tested or go into quarantine."
For more information on health advice for close contacts, visit the Queensland Health website.
Can parents still access the Pandemic Leave Disaster Payment?
The Pandemic Leave Disaster Payment was put in place for people unable to earn an income because they tested positive for COVID-19, they were a close contact or if they were caring for someone who had tested positive.
Even though close contact isolation rules were being scrapped, a spokesperson from the National Recovery and Resilience Agency said payments would still be available.
"Parents who have to look after a child under 16 years because they are required to self-isolate in accordance with the health order, may be eligible for Pandemic Leave Disaster Payment," the spokesperson said.
More information on the Pandemic Leave Disaster Payment can be found here.
