Covid rules to be eased as Victoria records 8501 cases, nine Covid deaths

Victoria will scrap a host of Covid restrictions from Friday, but one rule will remain in place for at least another week.

A bevy of Covid restrictions are set to be scrapped in Victoria, the Premier has announced.

Daniel Andrews said the changes would come into play from Friday at 6pm.

Density limits in hospitality and entertainment venues will end and indoor dancefloors are set to reopen.

QR codes in retail, schools and childcare centres will no longer be needed.

Masks will remain compulsory indoors and rules around working from home will remain in place until at least next Friday.

Premier Daniel Andrews has revealed coronavirus restrictions will ease in Victoria.

Hotel quarantine requirements for unvaccinated international travellers will also change, with the isolation period set to change to seven days instead of 14.

The decision to ease rules has been attributed to the number of infected people in hospital more than halving over the past month.

“We have made it very clear that we will do everything we can to normalise this virus – to push beyond it to get as close to normal living normal activity as we could possibly achieve,” Mr Andrews said.

Victorians could soon enjoy fewer Covid restrictions as case numbers flatten out. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Sarah Matray

“That’s always based on health advice. It’s always based on science and the numbers of the day and trends that we see numbers of people in hospital for instance.

“But having seen Omicron peak, and in seeing the numbers continue to fall over these last few weeks, the Minister has made a number of decisions.”

However, the Premier made clear eased restrictions didn’t mean the state was yet out of the Covid woods.

“I know what everybody wants – they want to be able to take their mask off inside and they want to be able to get back to normal working life,” he said.

“We just have to wait a little bit longer, but that’s where we’re headed.”

There are currently 401 Victorians in hospital with Covid, down from 1229 on January 17.

The Victorian government will also pump another 60,000 air purifiers into schools, bringing the total number to 111,000.

Education Minister James Merlino said improved classroom ventilation and masks had prevented tens of thousands of cases among schoolkids.

“Modelling shows that with an assumption of 75 per cent compliance, we have actually prevented more than 21,000 COVID-19 cases in our students,” he said.

Mr Merlino cited Burnett Institute modelling that showed a further 61,000 cases in students would be prevented by the end of term 1 if the trajectory continued.

That would extend to 150,000 community cases, preventing 400 hospital admissions.

The state recorded 8501 new cases and nine Covid deaths in the past 24 hours.

There are now 78 infected people in intensive care and 16 on ventilators.

More than 93 per cent of eligible Victorians are fully vaccinated and the state has 50,042 active cases.

A total of 23,683 PCR tests were taken on Wednesday and 9356 vaccines were administered at state hubs.