Health

Months into Victoria’s second wave, healthcare workers, cleaners and other front-line staff continue to be at greatest risk of contracting Covid-19, as concerns remain over infection control and the government’s transparency about outbreaks in vulnerable settings.

Following the death of her mother from Covid-19, the author has encountered the ugly ways in which the virus has been politicised by the Victorian opposition and even strangers in the street.

More than 90 per cent of Australia’s medicines are imported, putting the country at risk of dangerous shortages. But while the government has announced plans to boost the sector’s manufacturing capabilities, industry experts warn that the problem runs far deeper.

A leaked government document shows more staff in Victoria’s quarantine hotels have tested positive for Covid-19, even after an overhaul of the entire system.

The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted two decades of aged-care mismanagement, but at the heart of the sector is a pyramid scheme that exposes the taxpayer to billions in liability.

As more than 25,000 Australians wait for the chance to return home, at least one legal expert says the travel restrictions may breach the constitutional rights of citizens.

Exclusive: A leaked government database shows hospital transmission is key to Victoria’s recent Covid-19 cases, as new concerns are raised about access to protective equipment.

As the royal commission prepares findings that will likely recommend a return to an earlier system of aged care, the crisis in the sector can be linked to Howard-era reforms that stoked greed and lowered care standards, and have been worsened by successive governments.

As the pause in Oxford University’s Covid-19 vaccine trials reminds the public of the realities of medical research, the Morrison government has locked in 84 million doses of this and a second vaccine.

Exclusive: In a private briefing, Victoria’s chief health officer has contradicted the premier on the state’s failing contact tracing system and highlighted issues with the massive outsourcing of the response to private companies.