Victoria records 208 new local Covid-19 cases, one death as outbreak worsens despite lockdown
Dan Andrews has revealed freedoms only vaccinated Victorians will be able to enjoy once double dose targets are hit.
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Going to the pub, cinemas and sporting events could be a priviledge afforded only to Victorians vaccinated in a post-lockdown world, Dan Andrews has revealed.
The Victorian Premier announced that discussions were well underway with Prime Minister Scott Morrison to open up parts of the economy to those who had got the Covid-19 jab.
He said the measures would only being implemented once the 70 per cent and 80 per cent double dose vaccination targets were hit.
“The notion of a lockdown of the whole community is far less relevant (at 80 per cent),” Mr Andrews said.
“What will become a bigger part of our response is a lockout of many venues for those who are not vaccinated.
“That might seem a bit harsh but I am not going to lock the whole state down to protect people who will not protect themselves.
“If you are not vaccinated, and you could be, the chances of you booking a ticket at a sporting event, going to a pub, go to all manner of different places, will be very limited.”
Mr Andrews said he hoped that freedom would be the “greatest incentive” for Victorians to get vaccinated.
“You will be able to participate in an economy, go to the pub, the cinema, to a sporting event, things that an unvaccinated person will not be able to do,” he said.
“You will have freedoms that others will not have. They will be locked out of a whole range of venues because they could be vaccinated and they have chosen not to.”
The Premier said discussions were well and truly underway with a number of industries to run the outdoor vaccinated economy pilots to make sure the technology works.
It’s understood that Mr Andrews’ plan would include exemptions for people not able to be vaccinated due to health reasons.
It comes as scary sign emerged that the Victorian Delta outbreak could be worse than the one authorities are battling in NSW.
Victoria recorded 208 new locally acquired Covid-19 cases on Friday as the state’s outbreak continues to spiral out of control despite a sixth lockdown.
The health department confirmed a man in his 60s had also died from the virus overnight, the third life lost in the outbreak and state’s 823rd since the start of the pandemic.
Victoria’s new daily infections soared above 200 for the first time since August 22, 2020 – 366 days ago during Victoria’s deadly second wave – and Friday was the highest figure since 231 cases were recorded on August 19 last year.
It has taken Victoria just three days for new daily case figures to rise from 100 to more than 200.
In NSW in July, it took 15 days for new daily infections to reach 200 after hitting 100 on July 12.
And it’s also worse when compared with Victoria’s second wave in mid 2020 when it took seven days for cases to balloon from triple figures to above 200.
Deputy chief health officer Ben Cowie said authorities feared there were more cases lurking undetected in the community.
“Household transmission is far greater with the Delta variant than the original Covid-19 strain we encountered last year,” he said.
“As the greater number of active cases in the community, the greater the opportunity for the virus to escape.
“At the slightest sign of illness please go and get tested. We’re still having people waiting a week, getting seriously unwell and turning up to hospital without having been diagnosed until they get to hospital.
“That’s terrible for that individual, it’s devastating for their family, but it’s contributing to ongoing transmission as well.”
The health department confirmed the new local Covid-19 cases about 8.30am, with another 112 new mystery infections announced within the cases.
The health department revealed only 96 of the new cases could be linked to existing outbreaks.
They did not say how many cases were in isolation during their infectious period.
Mr Andrews conceded on Wednesday the case numbers would not go down and he has so far proven to be correct.
“What we must do is suppress case numbers sufficient to buy us time to get people vaccinated,” he said.
The Victorian Premier said some form of restrictions would need to remain in place in Victoria until the state reached the national threshold of 70 and 80 per cent of the population double dosed with a vaccination
There are now 1180 active cases across the state, up from 1029 on Thursday, with more than 13,700 people in isolation.
Professor Cowie said 192 of the 1029 active cases on Thursday were aged nine and under, 157 were aged between 10 and 19, and 243 were aged in their 20s.
One new case were recorded in hotel quarantine on Friday.
Originally published as Victoria records 208 new local Covid-19 cases, one death as outbreak worsens despite lockdown
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