Covid NSW: Positivity rate and hospitalisations on the rise
NSW has narrowly avoided breaking another daily Covid record after a second consecutive day of recording more than 6,300 local coronavirus infections.
The health department said on Monday, 6,324 new cases of Covid-19 had been recorded with a further three deaths in the state.
The new case number is lower than Sunday's total of 6,394 but the overall positivity rate – the number of tests which return a positive result – is higher. The positivity rate has increased to 6.5 per cent, compared to 5.8 per cent the previous day. However a huge surge in testing demand has led to delays in receiving results in some parts of NSW.
More than 97,000 people presented for testing on Boxing Day while more than 109,000 were tested in the 24 hours prior.
Hospitalisations in NSW have risen to 521, up from 458. There are also three more people in the ICU with 55 people requiring intensive care.
It also emerged late on Sunday that more than 400 people who were tested at St Vincent's Hospital received the wrong test result.
NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard warned everyone in Australia was likely to be infected with the Omicron variant at some stage.
It's highly likely everyone will spend 10 days in isolation in the next two or three years, he said, but noted symptoms appear milder and the current approach to isolation may change.
"Everyone in NSW is probably going to get Omicron at some stage. Everybody in Australia will get Omicron," he said, noting vaccination was the best way to face that prospect.
NSW currently has more than 93.5 per cent of its eligible population fully vaccinated against Covid-19.
Victoria records 1,999 new cases of Covid-19
The number of active Covid-19 cases in Victoria has dropped by nearly 1,000 but another 1,999 have tested positive.
There were 57,818 tests conducted on Boxing Day, with three more deaths reported among the figures on Monday.
Active case numbers dropped from 17,392 on Sunday to 16,467 on Monday, despite the new cases.
While the number of people in ICU grew by three to 80, the number of people on ventilators fell from 43 to 38.
The state's testing woes have continued with people turned away before sites opened again on Monday, as demand outstripped capacity at multiple locations.
Authorities have encouraged those needing tests to research less well-known sites to avoid spending long hours in queues.
with AAP
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