Covid-19 statistics summary for the year 2020
Dear Department of Health,
As this information is not currently readily available on any .gov website, please provide an accurate summary of COVID-19 statistics for the year 2020 in Australia. Specifically:
1) the number of COVID-19 *cases* in Australia from Jan 1 2020 to December 31st 2020 inclusive,
2) the number of COVID-19 *deaths* in Australia from Jan 1 2020 to December 31st 2020 inclusive.
Many thanks
Yours faithfully,
Lauren
Attention: Lauren
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST – NOTIFICATION OF RECEIPT AND REQUEST FOR AN EXTENSION OF TIME
I am writing to notify you that the Department of Health (department) received your request on 12 August 2021 for access to documents under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth) (FOI Act) being:
”1) the number of COVID-19 *cases* in Australia from Jan 1 2020 to December 31st 2020 inclusive,
2) the number of COVID-19 *deaths* in Australia from Jan 1 2020 to December 31st 2020 inclusive."
The statutory timeframe for processing your request is 30 calendar days within which a decision on access to the requested documents is to be notified. The department may impose a charge for the work involved in providing access to the documents. If this request attracts a charge you will be notified in writing.
Unless you advise otherwise, draft and duplicate documents, along with Commonwealth employee names and contact details below Senior Executive Service level and mobile telephone numbers of all staff will be excluded from the scope of your request under s22(1)(a)(ii) of the FOI Act.
Request for extension of time
As a result of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the department is dealing with a very high volume of FOI requests. To ensure the department can process your request in accordance with the requirements of the FOI Act, including locating and providing access to all relevant documents, the department would be grateful if you would agree to an extension of 30 calendar days for processing your request. If you agree, the department will endeavour to provide a decision to you by 11 October 2021.
Please contact the department by 23 August 2021 with your decision to the 30 day extension of processing time.
You can contact the FOI Unit on (02) 6289 1666, or via email at [email address], should you have any questions.
Kind regards
FOI Officer
FOI and Legislation Support Section
Legal & Assurance Division | Corporate Operations Group
Legal Advice & Legislation Branch
Australian Government Department of Health
T: 02 6289 1666 | E: [Health request email]
GPO Box 9848, Canberra ACT 2601, Australia
The Department of Health acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Australia and their continued connection to land, sea and community. We pay our respects to all Elders past and present.
If you receive this email in error, please delete it and contact the sender immediately.
Dear FOI,
Request for time extension respectfully declined.
Information required is time sensitive & due to COVID numbers being updated daily, this request should be able to be completed within a short window of time. I have calculated the numbers for 2020 as follows and simply require a confirmation or correction:
1) the number of COVID-19 *cases* in Australia from Jan 1 2020 to December 31st 2020 inclusive:
= 28408
2) the number of COVID-19 *deaths* in Australia from Jan 1 2020 to December 31st 2020 inclusive:
= 908
Many thanks
Yours sincerely,
Lauren
Our reference: RQ21/02654
Agency reference: FOI 2680
Lauren
Sent by email: [1][FOI #7680 email]
Extension of time application by the Department of Health
Dear Lauren
I write to advise you that on 7 September 2021, the Office of the
Australian Information Commissioner (the OAIC) received an application
from the Department of Health (the Department) for an extension of time,
to process your FOI request of 12 August 2021.
The Department has applied for an extension of time under s 15AB of the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth) because your request is considered
to be voluminous and/or complex.
The Department has advised the OAIC that:
o the request is complex or voluminous to process
o processing this request will require specialist staff with technical
expertise and corporate knowledge, who are currently working on the
pandemic, to assist with locating and assessing documents
o due to the nature and complexity of the request, it will be necessary
to review and examine a substantial volume of documents to determine
whether they are relevant to the scope of the request, and then to
examine the relevant documents to identify any irrelevant and/or
exempt material and then to decide whether any exempt material can be
released, and
o the additional time requested will ensure careful consideration can be
given to this request, commensurate with the substantial public
interest in COVID-19 and the sensitivities involved.
The Department has requested an extension to 11 October 2021. I will take
any comments you may have to make into account when deciding the
application.
Please respond to this email by close of business 10 September 2021. If I
do not hear from you by this date, I will proceed to make a decision on
the basis of the information provided to me by the Department.
You will be notified of the decision once the matter has been finalised.
Further information about extension of time requests may be found on our
website at [2]Extensions of time.
Contact
If you have any questions, please contact me on (02) 9284 9668 or via
email [3][email address]. In all correspondence please
include reference number at the top of this email.
Kind regards
Fernando Espinosa
Assistant Review and Investigation Adviser (Legal)
[4][IMG] Intake and Early Resolution Team
Freedom of information Regulatory Group
Office of the Australian Information
Commissioner
GPO Box 5218 Sydney NSW 2001 |
[5]oaic.gov.au
1300 363 992 | [6][email address]
[7][IMG] | [8][IMG] | [9][IMG] | [10]Subscribe to OAICnet newsletter
References
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4. https://www.oaic.gov.au/
5. https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
6. mailto:[email address]
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Dear Lauren,
Please find attached correspondence in relation to your Freedom of
Information request to the Department of Health.
Kind regards
FOI
FOI Unit – FOI and Legislation Support Section
Legal & Assurance Division | Corporate Operations Group
Legal Advice & Legislation Branch
Australian Government Department of Health
E: [1][email address]
GPO Box 9848, Canberra ACT 2601, Australia
The Department of Health acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of
Australia and their continued connection to land, sea and community. We
pay our respects to all Elders past and present.
If you receive this email in error, please delete it and contact the
sender immediately.
"Important: This transmission is intended only for the use of the
addressee and may contain confidential or legally privileged information.
If you are not the intended recipient, you are notified that any use or
dissemination of this communication is strictly prohibited. If you
receive this transmission in error please notify the author immediately
and delete all copies of this transmission."
References
Visible links
1. mailto:[email address]
Our reference: RQ21/02654
Agency reference: FOI 2680
Lauren
Sent by email: [1][FOI #7680 email]
Extension of time application under s 15AB
Dear Lauren
Please find attached a decision of today’s date.
Kind regards
Fernando Espinosa
Assistant Review and Investigation Adviser (Legal)
[2][IMG] Intake and Early Resolution Team
Freedom of information Regulatory Group
Office of the Australian Information
Commissioner
GPO Box 5218 Sydney NSW 2001 |
[3]oaic.gov.au
1300 363 992 | [4][email address]
[5][IMG] | [6][IMG] | [7][IMG] | [8]Subscribe to OAICnet newsletter