Vic COVID outbreak may have ‘plateaued’

IT is hoped Victoria’s latest coronavirus outbreak has plateaued, but those counting on a localised roadmap out of lockdown will be disappointed.

The state recorded 73 new COVID-19 cases on Monday, with 52 linked to known outbreaks.

One day after Premier Daniel Andrews confirmed the lockdown would not end on 2 September, Health Minister Martin Foley said “the situation has, we hope, plateaued” as he noted there was “every indication” the public health rules were starting to kick in.

But when asked about a plan out of lockdown, the state’s sixth, Mr Foley warned there would not be a map like during Victoria’s deadly second wave last year.Instead, the plan is the one agreed by national cabinet to rely on vaccination rates.

“In regards to specific timetables and in regards to specific measures, the public health team are working on those,” he said.

“But in terms of time frames … the strategy is the national cabinet agreed position, that when we get to 70 per cent, when we get to 80 per cent vaccination rates, our options multiply.

“If we do that, from the lowest possible infection levels, then our options grow.”

Up to 49 of the state’s new cases may have been infectious while in the community, after Mr Foley said at least 24 cases were isolating for their entire infectious period.

The source of infection in 21 cases is under investigation, with 52 linked to known outbreaks.

The state has 805 active virus cases, with 49 people in hospital, 15 in intensive care and 11 on ventilators.

Mr Foley said no first-dose Pfizer vaccine bookings were currently available at the state’s vaccination hubs.

Monday is the first day that GPs and pharmacies can administer Pfizer to people aged 16 to 39, and Mr Foley encouraged people to book through those avenues if they could not get a state clinic booking.

The virus is continuing to appear in regional areas, with one case announced on Sunday in the Gippsland town of Traralgon, in a person who had been to a funeral in Melbourne.

At least one of the cases announced on Sunday is in the Macedon Ranges.

The outbreak in Shepparton also continues to grow, with nine cases reported on Monday linked to that cluster.

Anyone who attended Sky Salon Hairdressing in Shepparton between August 15 and 19 is urged to get tested.

In Melbourne, the city’s west and north remain areas of concern and authorities have repeatedly had to remind people to get tested as soon as they recognise symptoms, as some people wait up to two weeks to get swabbed.

Victoria’s exposure site list now stands at more than 900, including a children’s ward at Dandenong Hospital across three days from August 25 to 27, which is a tier two site.

– BY AAP