A case of leprosy has been detected in the Northern Territory, prompting outcry over remote living conditions for Indigenous Australians.
The NT has recorded its first leprosy case since 2021, but a doctor says there is no cause for alarm as the public risk is minimal.
A much-misunderstood bacterial infection, leprosy can cause skin lesions and permanent nerve damage if left untreated. Leprosy was introduced to Australia during colonisation in the mid-1800s, but today cases are extremely rare and almost solely recorded among migrants and Indigenous people living in remote areas.Steve Rossingh, chief executive of Aboriginal community-controlled health organisation Miwatj Health, said Australia "should be pretty ashamed" the disease was continuing to impact Indigenous communities.
Dr Boyce says public health officials also conduct "contact tracing", similar to that used during the COVID-19 pandemic, to identify and treat any other people at risk.Mr Rossingh said the fact rare cases of leprosy were still being detected in remote areas of the Northern Territory was a symptom of economic inequality between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians.
In a statement, Health Minister Selena Uibo said all NT government grants were indexed at that same rate except for those in "identified priority areas", including domestic, family and sexual violence and mental health.
Aboriginal People Health Care Health Northern Territory NT Hosiptals
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