Government outlines access to non-digital documents

On October 4, Carol and Peter Merriman flew to Melbourne so Mr Merriman could undergo urgent spinal surgery at St Vincent's Hospital, but after complications arose, the couple's travel plans were thrown into chaos.

The Merrimans were left frustrated with the widely used digital service after several of their G2G applications were denied.

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St. Luke's head of health services Luke Cameron said he could understand the stress and frustration experienced by the couple, but said support was available.

He said most hospitals had designated services designed to help patients obtain the documents necessary to complete a G2G pass following a procedure.

"The hospitals themselves have expert admission and discharge teams who should be able to help answer [questions] and potentially provide access to social workers who are skilled at navigating federal and state government systems," he said.

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Mr Cameron said patients should consult with their hospital to obtain any documents required for interstate travel.

"Consider as part of the admissions process, particularly if you are travelling interstate, having that discussion with the admissions team about what happens if you have to stay a bit longer and ask, is there somebody you could put me in contact with that could help get me through this process."

With medical travel between Tasmania and the mainland common for procedures, Mr Cameron said border restrictions meant patients would need to adapt to a new way of travelling.

He said for patients who struggled with technology or had limited access, there were proactive measures they could take to work with the G2G system and other services required when travelling interstate.

Mr Cameron said the best thing patients could do was to pre-plan for the unforeseen, explaining making copies of any documents that may be required as evidence was the first step.

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He said any documents should be made in duplicate, with one set taken by the patient travelling and the second provided to a friend or family member at home who can assist if required.

Mr Cameron said while much of the onus for interstate travel was placed on individuals, consideration needed to be given to people with limited access or understanding of the highly digitised protocols.

Acting Assistant Commissioner Robert Blackwood said travellers into Tasmania without access to smartphone apps such as the G2G pass would be provided with a document on arrival, with travellers required to demonstrate the necessary evidence.

"A manual travel form can be submitted on arrival," he said.

"It's important that travellers are aware of the requirements pre-departure."

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With borders set to reopen this week, Mr Blackwood said travellers coming from interstate were required to provide a negative COVID test, and confirmed those without access to a smartphone would need to provide evidence that could be obtained from the testing facility.

"Private pathology clinics in other jurisdictions will conduct pre-travel COVID-19 tests and will generally provide a COVID-19 testing and results certificate to the traveller," he said.

"Certificates across jurisdictions and clinics will vary in presentation and format, but the certificate will need to clearly state the clinic's name and location, the test date, the test outcome, and the traveller's name to be acceptable in Tasmania."

Earlier this month, Health Minister Jeremy Rockliff announced the introduction of the Check-in TAS Card.

He said although smartphones were the simplest and most effective way of checking in to locations there were circumstances where people would not be able to use a smartphone.

He said the card contained a unique QR code with the holder's details that would allow a business to check individuals in.

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