Infection Cases Still High In Sydney, PM Morrison Wants Australia To Learn To Live With COVID-19

Illustration of a COVID-19 vaccination center in Australia. (Wikimedia Commons/Nick-D)

JAKARTA - Australia will have to start learning to live with COVID-19 when higher vaccination targets are reached, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Monday, despite concerns in some states about the impact of a spike in cases in Sydney.

With more than half of all Australians stuck in a weeks-long lockdown to curb the highly contagious Delta variant, PM Morrison said the country must move forward and start easing restrictions, as more people get vaccinated.

"(Lockdown) cannot last forever. This is not a sustainable way of life in this country," he told a televised media conference in Canberra.

"Because if it's not 70 percent and 80 percent (covid-19 vaccination rate), then when? We have to take that step and we have to prepare for that step and we have to prepare the country to take that step," he continued.

PM Morrison's comments came after differences emerged between the state seeking to maintain focus on suppressing the virus, and the largest state in New South Wales, which is seeking a way out of lockdown through vaccination following a large outbreak of the Delta variant.

The federal government last month unveiled a four-stage plan to ease restrictions after 70 percent of the 25 million people over the age of 16 were vaccinated, with the strict lockdown no longer needed.

When vaccination coverage reaches 80 per cent, only a "very targeted" lockdown is required. And vaccinated Australians will be free to travel between states.

The states of Western Australia and Queensland, which are largely coronavirus-free, have indicated they may still maintain some restrictions, even when vaccination targets are met. They said the national plan agreed before the New South Wales outbreak was based only on small community outbreaks.

Meanwhile, the State of New South Wales reported 818 cases, mostly in Sydney, slightly down from a record 830 the day before.

New South Wales Prime Minister Gladys Berejiklian urged people not to focus too much on cases. Instead, he asked all parties to focus on launching a COVID-19 vaccination.

"Once you get to a double dose of 80 percent, every state has to live with COVID. You can't keep the Delta variant away forever."

In Victoria State with the capital Melbourne, 71 new cases were detected with 55 having spent time in the community while infectious, which State Prime Minister Daniel Andrews said could thwart plans to come out of lockdown on September 2.

To note, Australia has managed the pandemic better than many other developed countries. However, the slow pace of vaccine launches has eclipsed early success.

Nationally, 30 percent of the population over 16 years of age have been fully vaccinated, while 52 percent have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Vaccinations are proceeding at a record pace, but the full 80 percent vaccination target will not be reached until December at current levels.

Meanwhile, Kangaroo Country itself has reported more than 44,600 cases in total. There were 984 deaths, although the death toll has declined since last year.