Australians relax their COVID-19 precautions

More Australians reported household members returning positive COVID-19 tests in April while fewer reported taking precautions against the spread of the Coronavirus, according to newly-released survey results from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

Commenting on fewer Australians taking necessary COVID-19 precautions, ABS Head of Household Surveys, David Zago advised “our latest Household Impacts of COVID-19 Survey, conducted between 19th and 28th April 2022, showed 62% of households had a COVID-19 test in the past four weeks, up from 46% in March 2022.”

"Of those households where someone had a COVID-19 test, 23% reported one or more household members had tested positive in April, up from 14% in March.

“However, only 78% of Australians in April reported wearing a face mask in the previous week, down from 98% in February.

“In April, Australians were also less likely in the week before the survey was conducted to have taken precautions by washing their hands or using hand sanitiser regularly (92% down from 95% in February), and physically distancing themselves from other people (75% down from 85%)."

The results, released as part of a suite of ABS products to measure the impacts of COVID-19 on households from 2020 to 2022, also provide insight into social activities and working from home arrangements of people compared with before COVID-19 restrictions were introduced in Australia.

Zago added "almost twice as many employed Australians worked from home one or more times a week in April compared to before COVID-19 restrictions were introduced in March 2020 (46% up from 24%). Meanwhile, fewer Australians exercised at a gym or played sport in April compared to March 2020 (29% down from 38%).”

Australians in April were also less likely to attended social gatherings one or more times a week than before restrictions were introduced (20% down from 27%).