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South Africa’s latest COVID-19 regulations ‘go against MAC advice’

Revised COVID-19 regulations announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa last Tuesday (22 March) go against the advice from the Ministerial Advisory Committee (MAC), reports BusinessLIVE.

It writes that documents published by the government show the MAC recommended dropping all COVID-19 testing and screening of visitors to SA and scrapping social distancing rules because those measures no longer had a meaningful effect on the trajectory of the pandemic. However, the latest iteration of government’s adjusted alert level one restrictions, contained in regulations to the Disaster Management Act published in the Government Gazette, say only vaccinated travellers are exempt from costly PCR testing, and maintain the 1m social distancing requirement in public spaces, including outdoors.

“COVID-19 is expected to persist globally for years, possibly indefinitely. Costly, large-scale containment efforts are therefore inappropriate. While it is inevitable that easing restrictions on outdoor and indoor gatherings will allow for greater transmission of the virus, the focus should now be on preventing severe disease by promoting vaccination and focusing protective measures on high-risk individuals, rather than trying to prevent infections per se,” the scientists wrote in the latest advisory.

Describing the measures as “regulatory theatre”, Progressive Health Forum convener Aslam Dasoo said the continued restrictions would have no meaningful effect on the trajectory of the disease in SA but damage the economy.

Business Day reports that a technical working group supporting the ministerial advisory committee had warned the government six weeks ago that its plan to replace the coronavirus regulations risked legal challenge because they would potentially undermine constitutionally enshrined rights.

However, the government had pressed ahead with its plan to use National Health Act regulations to deal with COVID-19 and any future health threats.

They are contained in amendments to three sets of regulations to the National Health Act and amendments to regulations to the International Health Regulations Act.

The working group’s advice is contained in a position paper dated 8 February, released on the government’s coronavirus website last Wednesday night (23 March). Ministerial advisory committee co-chair Koleka Mlisana said the group provided evidence-based scientific advice, but could not force the government to follow it.

“They decide whether to take our advice, tweak it, or not take it. Difficult as it is, it is something we have learnt to live with.”

 

new COVID REGS MARCH

 

Mitigating-COVID-19-Going-Forward-Position-Paper_8Feb2022_Final2

BusinessLive article – New Covid rules for travellers fly in the face of scientific advice (Open access)

Business Day PressReader article – Evidence piles up that Covid advice was ignored (Open access)

 

See more from MedicalBrief archives:

 

Most State of Disaster restrictions 'unfit for purpose', say SA's top health experts

 

The real State of Disaster is SA’s new COVID regulations – Scientists’ Collective

 

South African government has ‘quietly de-prioritised vaccinations’

 

Why Omicron doesnʼt need its own custom COVID vaccine

 

 

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