Health Minister Mark Butler says government payments for those isolating with COVID-19 were never meant to be a permanent measure.
The payments, which ended on 30 June, were for people who needed to spend time away from their work due to needing to isolate for seven days with COVID-19.
"If we extended these for a couple of months, we would have had this discussion at that time. These are hard decision you have to make when you're $1 trillion in debt." "We want to make sure people are on a job ... we have to be careful and make sure you get to a point where you have to live with COVID," he told the Seven Network.
An additional 7.4 million people will be able to receive a fourth vaccine dose, with people over 50 recommended to get the extra booster, while those over 30 are also eligible.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Access to COVID-19 anti-viral medication expandedCheap tablets to treat COVID-19 are now available over the counter to people aged over 70.
Read more »
More Australians eligible for COVID-19 antiviral treatmentMillions more Australians will have access to life-saving antiviral COVID-19 treatment from tomorrow in a move to stem hospital admissions. 9News
Read more »
New COVID-19 jab rules to affect millions of AustraliansAn additional 7.5 million Australians are eligible for the fourth COVID-19 jab from today, sparking a surge in demand.
Read more »
Is North Korea hiding a bigger problem behind its COVID-19 outbreak?As with past outbreaks of disease in North Korea, one of the biggest concerns surrounding the country's COVID-19 outbreak is that Pyongyang's penchant for secrecy makes it hard to accurately gauge its severity. 9News
Read more »
Access to COVID-19 anti-viral medication expandedAccess to cheap antiviral medicine to fight COVID-19 is now available for all Australians aged over 70, after the federal government expanded eligibility. | micksfoley
Read more »
More Australians eligible for COVID-19 antiviral treatmentThe drugs will be available to everyone aged over 70 and those over 50 who have health conditions such as obesity or diabetes. 9News
Read more »