Omicron warning after massive surge in NSW case numbers
NSW’s surge has continued with the state clocking another record number of infections as the Health Minister delivers a stark message.
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NSW has hit a new record of cases with 6394 new Covid-19 infections in the 24 hours to 8pm Christmas Day.
It comes after the state set a previous record of 6288 infections on Saturday, up from 5612 on Friday.
There have been no new Covid-related deaths, but the latest figures released on Boxing Day have revealed there are 458 people in hospital with the virus, with 52 of those in intensive care.
The number of hospitalisations – which is the way NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet says the virus risk should be measured – is an increase of 70 people from the data released on Christmas Day when there were 388 in hospital.
However the number of people in ICU has remained the same.
An impressive 109,545 tests were conducted in the 24 hours to 8pm on Christmas Day despite major queues and reports that some people were turned away.
The state also hit its first dose vaccination goal of 95 per cent coverage on Saturday.
Health Minister Brad Hazzard said every NSW resident should prepare to get COVID-19.
“We’re all going to get Omicron … (but) Omicron is not as severe in terms of its impact on individuals,” he said.
“The unvaccinated are taking more places than they should be in our ICUs simply because they’ve chosen not to be vaccinated.
“Those who make the choice not to get vaccinated are putting themselves and our health staff at risk.
Meanwhile, Victoria recorded a drop in infections on Boxing Day with 1608 new coronavirus cases and two deaths.
That is less than Christmas Day when the state recorded 2108 new Covid cases and six deaths.
Dozens of coronavirus testing sites in Victoria have closed down or are reporting wait times of up to several hours, as residents flock to get tested after Christmas Day.
An estimated 30,000 people were forced into isolation on Christmas Day, with testing sites reaching capacity before 9am on Sunday.
There were 72,519 tests carried out over Christmas in the state.
It follows a week of strain on the state’s testing centres, with many closed or having agonising wait times in the lead-up to Christmas.
The dilemma continued Boxing Day, with several sites closed completely.
Testing sites at Albert Park, Montague Street, Bourke Street, Glenroy, Monash, LaTrobe Bundoora and Victoria universities were all closed before 9am as they reached capacity.
People in line at The Alfred were told as early as 7.30am wait times would stretch out to four hours.
Despite the drop in cases on Sunday, the state remains on edge as the Omicron variant continues to circulate and concern mounts about the spread of the virus at popular Christmas events and gatherings.
Public health authorities are attempting to limit a new Christmas outbreak at St Paul’s Cathedral, after seven cases were linked to rehearsals and performances of the choir and orchestra for Carols in the Cathedral.
Public health authorities are attempting to limit a new Christmas outbreak at St Paul’s Cathedral, after seven cases were linked to rehearsals and performances of the choir and orchestra for Carols in the Cathedral. Victorians had an indoor mask mandate introduced on Friday in response to the rapid spread of the Omicron variant within the community and across Australia.
QLD RECORDS 714 NEW CASES
Queensland has recorded 714 new cases of coronavirus on Boxing Day.
It comes after the state had a record of 765 new Covid-19 infections on Christmas Day and the state’s chief health officer warned they would reach thousands of cases by January.
On Friday, 589 new infections were recorded which was a 60 per cent increase from the 369 cases reported the day before.
Health Minister Yvette D’Ath has warned that with people catching up for Christmas it is inevitable the virus will spread.
TESTING CLINICS ‘IN MELTDOWN’
A Sydney mayor says he has heard reports of testing clinics being “in meltdown” in his area as wait times on Christmas Day blew out in some parts of the state.
One person, who is a state parliament employee and was seeking testing as a close contact, was standing in line at Prince of Wales Hospital in Randwick.
They said they saw dozens of people appearing to be turned away amid overwhelming demand, while others queued for more than five hours before being tested.
“We got there at 8am, the place opened at 9am and we got tested at about 3:10pm,” the person said.
“At 2pm they said ‘look, we just can’t test everyone who is already lined up’.
“One woman said she had taken four positive rapid antigen tests and they just had to turn her away because they didn’t have the staff. There were a lot of angry and frustrated people.
“At the start people were distancing, but as the day got hotter people compressed under the shade.”
Randwick Mayor Dylan Parker said on Christmas Day he had heard reports that local testing was in “meltdown”.
“Hundreds of people waiting in line for several hours with multiple drive-throughs shut,” he posted on Facebook.
“Reportedly now Prince of Wales hospital is no longer accepting walk-ins as the line is too long.
“This mess was totally foreseeable.”
Cr Parker said that all three of Randwick’s regular drive in clinics were closed on Christmas Day adding stress to ones that remained open as people sought tests for travel and ahead of gatherings.
“There were previously some restrictions on hours of operation for clinics. We’ve said all of those restrictions are gone. If they need to operate seven days a week, on public holidays, if they need to start at six in the morning and run till ten at night they can do that,” he said.
“Locals are doing the right thing and are getting tested – they’re missing Christmas.
“Anyone could have expected that in the lead up to Christmas there’s going to be increased demand for testing.”
A spokesman for Prince of Wales denied that people had been turned away.
“I’ve been told they didn’t turn people away, but the queue’s very long. They halted the queue for a little while because they were taking children to the front, but they haven’t turned people away,” the spokesman said.
Queensland, Tasmania and WA require a negative PCR tests from visitors taken within 72 hours of their arriving from ‘high risk’ or ‘hotspot’ areas.
The Covid-19 testing clinic at Millers Point was reportedly about an hour wait in the morning, with times decreasing over the day.
In South Australia, there were about three hour wait times at the Victoria Park testing clinic in the morning, while the drive-through clinic at Ridgehaven only had a few cars waiting before midday.
Current wait time at Sandringham Hospital Covid testing clinic on Xmas morning. pic.twitter.com/dJoJCmTBhf
— Martin - :: ✊ 🖤 ðŸ³ï¸â€ðŸŒˆ ðŸ³ï¸â€âš§ï¸ 💧💚🌎 (@martincedes) December 24, 2021
A spokesperson for NSW Health said they were monitoring the demand.
“NSW Health is closely monitoring the demand for testing and has the capacity to extend opening hours, introduce additional drive-through sites and establish extra pop-up clinics should the need arise,” the spokesperson said.
“As at 25 December 2021, pathology services in NSW have performed more than 24 million tests.
“NSW Health thanks the community for their incredible response in coming out for testing, as transmission rates of Covid-19 increase across the state.”
BOOSTER INTERVAL CUT
Health Minister Greg Hunt has said Australia’s booster vaccine rollout will move from a five to a four month interval from January 4.
He said the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation has reviewed the case for it, based on international advice, and the federal government will be bringing forward the eligibility for booster doses.
“The planning behind that is that will open up a new cohort. Currently that means that we will go from about 3.2 million people who are eligible today to approximately 7.5 million who will be eligible as January 4,” he said.
“That means that the cohort has expanded. It will be expanded again on January 31 to three months and that will take it out to 16 million Australians who will be eligible at that point in time and as we have said all along.”
He said Australia will pass its two million booster vaccine milestone on Christmas Eve, with half a million jabs ahead of schedule.
Chief Health Officer Professor Paul Kelly said the two reasons why the changes have been made are based on “protecting people against severe disease”.
He also said the vaccine’s waning effect was also an issue.
“There is a diminished (effect) but not completely – the protection does not completely disappear in relation to severe disease from the first two doses of the vaccine,” he said.
“It wanes over time, hence the time-based change in the boosters. The positive effect of that is that we do know now that boosters do protect and increase that protection against severe disease once that third dose is given or a fourth dose in the case of immunocompromised people.”
“It does decrease over time. It remains in place for severe infection but it is diminished for Omicron compared with Delta.”
Prof Kelly said boosters can help reduce the transmission of the virus.
“It will be an important and is already becoming an important part of our control of the current Omicron wave in Australia,” he said.
“We have been saying … for quite some time, cases are not the most important thing at the moment. The vast majority of those cases are mild or asymptomatic.”
He said the January 4 and January 31 dates are based on the “science and the medical advice” and Australia has been “leading the world”.
“We know that it is not an immediate thing when the vaccine starts to wear off, it’s a time-based thing. Again, as we have done all the way through the process, is we have prioritised the ones that are at most risk. Nowhere in the world has done – when we got to our peak of vaccination, we’re around 2.2 million doses a week. That, on a per capita basis, was leading the world,” he said.
“However, we have talked about transmission and so what we’re seeing in other parts of the world is a doubling rate of cases every two or three days and that is what we’re seeing here. We’re not seeing that same sort of increase in hospitalisations or ICU and I think they’re the most important metrics for people to look at. People should be alert to this, take it – particularly with this announcement today, make that booking in the new year to get that booster if you’re eligible.”
HUNT ATTACKS ALBO: ‘NOT FIT TO BE PM’
It comes after Mr Hunt criticised Labor leader Anthony Albanese for blaming Covid testing site chaos across Australia on the fact the governments have not been prepared.
“Overwhelmingly, people are waiting in queues because the governments haven’t prepared. The federal government shut down a whole lot of the testing areas,” Mr Albanese said.
Mr Hunt responded on Thursday: “For Mr Albanese to make a false untrue, incorrect, inaccurate statement, either without thinking, or deliberate knowing it was a lie, is the act of someone who is not fit to be prime minister.”
Mr Hunt also said Australia’s hospital system is well equipped to deal with the Omicron outbreak, as the booster program continues its rollout.
He said as of Wednesday, there were still 54 patients on ventilation with Covid.
“So despite the increase in case numbers, there had been zero increase in ventilated patients numbers,” he said.
“ICU – what we see is that a week ago, there were 109 patients in ICU.
“As of yesterday, the figures provided at midday today by the National Incident Centre, there were 112. So an increase of only three patients in a week. So the two things that we know – the hospital system is well equipped.”
He also stressed Australia was not seeing an increase in serious cases requiring ICU or ventilation.
He disclosed more than 1500 aged care facilities have received their boosters.
“Every aged care facility that has been able and willing to receive because they were eligible and they were ready, has had their deliveries done so far,” he added.
“Those that are still to be done are on the basis of their own timing. And so, we’re well ahead of schedule. We’re about 300 facilities ahead of where we’d anticipated and expected to have been.”
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