Calls for South Australia to shut borders as Omicron risk assessed

The South Australian president of the Australian Medical Association has called for the state's borders to be shut until more is known about the new Omicron variant of COVID-19.

AMA SA president Dr Michelle Atchison urged the state government to "press pause" on border entries until health authorities have a clearer picture of the risk Omicron poses.

"What we're saying is press pause on it, give us some time, let the medical profession understand what is happening with Omicron," Dr Atchison said.

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There are currently no confirmed cases of the new variant in South Australia, but several cases have been detected in recent arrivals to NSW and the Northern Territory via flights from southern Africa.

Premier Steven Marshall called for restraint, saying no decision on South Australia's borders will be made until after the meeting of National Cabinet on Tuesday.

"Let's just wait and see what information we can gather over the next 24, 48 hours," Mr Marshall urged.

"We do know though that it is highly transmissible, so tomorrow we will get more information.

"I am hopeful that we can stick to our normal timetable, but we do need to listen to the experts."

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Western Australia has already reclassified South Australia as "low risk", meaning travellers who arrive must complete 14 days of self-quarantine.

"I'd like to stress that at this stage there's no evidence of community spread in South Australia, but based on the chief health officer's updated risk assessment we've decided to upgrade our controlled border arrangements with South Australia as a precautionary measure," WA Premier Mark McGowan said.

"As we've done throughout this pandemic, we're acting on the most up-to-date health advice.

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"Over the past 24 hours, we have seen reports of a new COVID-19 variant, Omicron, detected in parts of the world including southern Africa, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

"These reports are concerning, and reinforce the need to keep Western Australia's strong border controls and hotel quarantine system in place to keep WA safe – as we have done over the past 18 months."