Media & Business Brief
AUS hits 1m living with Covid diagnosis ahead of election
10 January 2022
One million Australians are now officially living with a Covid diagnosis – more than lung disease and cancer – with 250,000 cases since Friday alone, the latest VaxEnomicTM Forecaster from C-suite strategy group Provocate reveals.
Provocate Managing Director Troy Bilsborough – a former senior advisor to Federal Health, Aged Care and Child Care Ministers – said that equated to one-in-25 Australians recorded cases and warned it could leave a lasting legacy that could swing the health vote at upcoming Federal and state elections.
Provocate’s VaxEnomicTM Forecaster also found over 800,000 (80%) of Australia’s total 1,036,306 covid cases recorded since the pandemic began two years ago had come since Omicron’s arrival. That equated to a 382% increase in recorded cases in five weeks, noting actual infections in the community were likely double that.
Mr Bilsborough said Provocate said growing cases and “electionomics” would see a swift shift in pressure on governments and businesses to treat Covid and any long-term health risks as chronic illness.
“The big risk for incumbent governments in 2022 is the growing number of Australian households directly impacted by a Covid diagnosis vote based on what their health, not their head, says,” Mr Bilsborough said.
“Healthcare influenced more votes than any other issue at the last Federal election and Omicron risks leaving a lasting legacy in the minds of voters, even after its peaked.
“We’ve also seen roughly five months between the arrival of new variants like Delta and Omicron, meaning the major parties could be facing a likely May Federal Election in the midst of a new outbreak, not just this one.”
Mr Bilsborough said prior to Christmas, Covid had largely been a theoretical threat for most Australians, meaning governments were being judged on their competency as emergency and economic managers, not their healthcare credentials.
He warned governments to be careful transitioning their sales pitch to Covid being akin to a common cold too quickly or risk alienating voters further, particularly after the WHO warned labelling Omicron mild a “mistake”.
“The fact there’s now more cases of Covid than other key chronic health election issues like cancer, kidney and lung disease almost guarantees it will feature as a key issue in the minds of voters in 2022.
“Governments and business must navigate the next few months carefully and gently, particularly given the predicted increase in Long Covid claims and how any alleged chronic illness will be treated, funded and supported under Medicare, private health, social services and industrial law.
“There currently seems little incentive for a March Federal election, which would provide a window for some of these matters to be neutralised in the government’s pre-poll Budget depending on their appetite."
AUS hits 1m living with Covid diagnosis ahead of election
10 January 2022
One million Australians are now officially living with a Covid diagnosis – more than lung disease and cancer – with 250,000 cases since Friday alone, the latest VaxEnomicTM Forecaster from C-suite strategy group Provocate reveals.
Provocate Managing Director Troy Bilsborough – a former senior advisor to Federal Health, Aged Care and Child Care Ministers – said that equated to one-in-25 Australians recorded cases and warned it could leave a lasting legacy that could swing the health vote at upcoming Federal and state elections.
Provocate’s VaxEnomicTM Forecaster also found over 800,000 (80%) of Australia’s total 1,036,306 covid cases recorded since the pandemic began two years ago had come since Omicron’s arrival. That equated to a 382% increase in recorded cases in five weeks, noting actual infections in the community were likely double that.
Mr Bilsborough said Provocate said growing cases and “electionomics” would see a swift shift in pressure on governments and businesses to treat Covid and any long-term health risks as chronic illness.
“The big risk for incumbent governments in 2022 is the growing number of Australian households directly impacted by a Covid diagnosis vote based on what their health, not their head, says,” Mr Bilsborough said.
“Healthcare influenced more votes than any other issue at the last Federal election and Omicron risks leaving a lasting legacy in the minds of voters, even after its peaked.
“We’ve also seen roughly five months between the arrival of new variants like Delta and Omicron, meaning the major parties could be facing a likely May Federal Election in the midst of a new outbreak, not just this one.”
Mr Bilsborough said prior to Christmas, Covid had largely been a theoretical threat for most Australians, meaning governments were being judged on their competency as emergency and economic managers, not their healthcare credentials.
He warned governments to be careful transitioning their sales pitch to Covid being akin to a common cold too quickly or risk alienating voters further, particularly after the WHO warned labelling Omicron mild a “mistake”.
“The fact there’s now more cases of Covid than other key chronic health election issues like cancer, kidney and lung disease almost guarantees it will feature as a key issue in the minds of voters in 2022.
“Governments and business must navigate the next few months carefully and gently, particularly given the predicted increase in Long Covid claims and how any alleged chronic illness will be treated, funded and supported under Medicare, private health, social services and industrial law.
“There currently seems little incentive for a March Federal election, which would provide a window for some of these matters to be neutralised in the government’s pre-poll Budget depending on their appetite."
Figure 2 Source: Provocate analysis of Federal Dept of health national ‘Top 10 Chronic Conditions’ and analysis as a 7 January 2021 of verified Federal and state health department sources and others, such as Our World in Data and covidlive.com.au. Some state and territory figures may be from the prior day at time of publish.
-ends-
Spokesperson Bio: Troy Bilsborough has been the Managing Director and Founder of C-suite strategy consulting group Provocate since 2017. Troy is Australia’s leading Electionomics specialist and has been delivering win-win-wins on Australia’s biggest policies and issues for over 15 years for companies, communities and the country, including as an award-winning C-suite Advisor; former Senior Advisor to the Federal Health, Aged Care, Sport and Child Care Ministers, and two Brisbane Lord Mayors; as well as a journalist covering business, politics and sport.
Headshot: https://filetransfer.io/data-package/6BsXrEgN#link
Company Bio: Provocate is a multi award-winning C-suite strategy advisory group specialising in helping global, large and listed entities operating in highly-regulated markets take advantage of Electionomics by minimisin0067 their government, competitor and external risks, while maximising opportunities that mutually benefit the company, as well as the communities and countries they operate in.
-ends-
Spokesperson Bio: Troy Bilsborough has been the Managing Director and Founder of C-suite strategy consulting group Provocate since 2017. Troy is Australia’s leading Electionomics specialist and has been delivering win-win-wins on Australia’s biggest policies and issues for over 15 years for companies, communities and the country, including as an award-winning C-suite Advisor; former Senior Advisor to the Federal Health, Aged Care, Sport and Child Care Ministers, and two Brisbane Lord Mayors; as well as a journalist covering business, politics and sport.
Headshot: https://filetransfer.io/data-package/6BsXrEgN#link
Company Bio: Provocate is a multi award-winning C-suite strategy advisory group specialising in helping global, large and listed entities operating in highly-regulated markets take advantage of Electionomics by minimisin0067 their government, competitor and external risks, while maximising opportunities that mutually benefit the company, as well as the communities and countries they operate in.