Australia's mandatory coronavirus isolation rules are set to be scrapped from October 14, while pandemic leave support payments will soon end for a range of workers.
While health authorities say it signals a move away from "COVID exceptionalism", they've warned "it does not in any way suggest that the pandemic is finished".
Here's what you need to know.
What is changing?
In a fortnight, rules forcing people with COVID to isolate for five days will be scrapped for everyone.
At the same time, the Pandemic Leave Disaster Payment will come to an end.
In order to protect the most-vulnerable, targeted financial support will continue for casual workers in a range of high-risk settings.
"The flu has existed, and health issues have existed, for a long period of time, and the government hasn't always stepped in to pay people's wages while people have health concerns," Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said.
"It is not sustainable to have in place a system whereby the government steps in permanently."
Individual states and territories will be responsible for implementing the changes.
Who will be eligible for financial support?
Targeted support will continue for casual workers in:
- aged care
- disability care
- aboriginal healthcare and
- hospital care sectors
Mr Albanese said that when governments were mandating COVID requirements that prevented people from earning an income, there was a "responsibility to provide support".
"But we have agreed today, based upon the advice, that we are moving beyond the emergency settings that were put in place," he said.
Why are the rules changing?
According to Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly, Australia is at a "very low community transmission phase of the pandemic".
While he's cautioned that it doesn't mean "the pandemic is finished", there are currently "very low rates" of cases, hospitalisations, intensive care admissions and aged care outbreaks.
"This virus will be around for many years but it is time to consider, as the PM has just said, different ways of dealing with it and that should be proportionate to what is happening in front of us," Professor Kelly said.
Could the rules be reinstated later on?
Asked if he would recommend bringing back mandatory isolation during peak periods of the virus, Professor Kelly said health authorities had been asked to "come back with that advice".
He said national cabinet had asked health authorities to remain vigilant for new variants.
"For example, for changes in the epidemiological situation in Australia, for signs that we have strain on our health care system, and [to] be prepared to make different decisions at that moment," Professor Kelly said.
"For now, as I've stated, I believe removing isolation at this time is a reasonable cause of action from the public health point of view."
Could it see an increase in long COVID cases?
Health authorities are looking at the data, but they're "not seeing a major picture of long COVID", Professor Kelly said.
Australia is in "quite a different situation to most of the rest of the world" because most people weren't exposed to the virus before getting vaccinated.
"We know the major risk factors for long COVID are having had infection before vaccination, being unvaccinated, having severe illness, and having other types of COVID that were not Omicron," he said.
"None of those things pertain to the Australian situation for most of us."
Professor Kelly said while some people have reported long-term symptoms, "it remains to be seen how that will play out in the Australian situation".
