- Australia will soon start treating Covid like the flu, National Cabinet has ruled
- Australians who catch the virus but have mild symptoms won’t need to isolate
- Each state and territory will decide when they are ready to implement change
- Despite fears new sub-strain of Omicron variant spreading across Australia
By Charlie Coë For Daily Mail Australia
Published: 20:36 AEDT, 11 March 2022 | Updated: 09:03 AEDT, 12 March 2022
Australia will start treating Covid like the flu despite fears a new ‘stealth’ version of the virus is set to spread rapidly across the country.
The National Cabinet on Friday agreed healthy Australians who catch the virus but only have mild symptoms would soon no longer need to take a Covid test or isolate.
The new policy will be adopted by each state and territory when they are ready.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison convened the meeting to discuss a $2.1billion plan to battle both Covid-19 and influenza over the upcoming winter.
The national cabinet will now consult the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee about changes to the mandatory Covid isolation period, which stands at seven days for confirmed cases.
The imminent relaxation of coronavirus rules comes despite fears the new sub-strain of the Omicron variant is already spreading across Australia.
