Australia is scrapping mandatory Covid isolation, with exemptions for high-risk settings, after similar moves in the UK and other countries. This comes after the World Health Organization last month declared the end of the pandemic is ‘in sight’ but ‘now is the worst time to stop running’. Epidemiologist Prof Catherine Bennett explains what Australia’s decision means for our path out of the pandemic, and disability rights activist Ashleigh Rae details how it could affect people who are vulnerable to coronavirus