New health advice for close contacts linked to WA schools

As Western Australia's latest daily case numbers hit 2,270, WA Health has introduced new rules for close contacts of COVID-19 cases linked to schools, based on public health advice.

Under the new rules, parents and carers are no longer required to automatically quarantine with a child who is identified as a close contact of a COVID-19 case.

Depending on the child's needs, one parent or carer may still need to stay home to care for them while the child is quarantining.

Parents and carers of children who are close contacts need to take extra precautions and limit interaction with the close contact where possible and monitor themselves for symptoms. If symptoms arise, they should get tested immediately.

The rest of the household, including siblings who have not been identified as close contacts, can attend work or school, and should also monitor themselves for symptoms.

Chief Health Officer, Dr Andrew Robertson said it was important that the whole Western Australian community continue to do their part to keep themselves and others safe.

"These rules have been introduced to minimise the impact on families when children are identified as close contacts, including enabling siblings who have not been identified as close contacts to continue to attend school," Dr Robertson said.

"There are steps that people in this situation can take to protect themselves and their family."

The family should:

/Public Release. This material from the originating organization/author(s) might be of the point-in-time nature, and edited for clarity, style and length. Mirage.News does not take institutional positions or sides, and all views, positions, and conclusions expressed herein are solely those of the author(s).View in full here.