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NSW Covid deaths continue despite a drop in hospitalisations

NSW's Covid-19 deaths continue to mount, with a further 25 fatalities announced on Thursday.

It takes the number of deaths in the past 72 hours for the state to 93.

There were a further 30,825 new cases reported in the 24 hours to 8pm last night, down from the 32,297 reported a day earlier.

Both hospitalisations and people in ICU dropped, with those figures standing at 2,781 and 212 respectively.

NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet has defended his handling of the Covid Omicron wave. Source: AAP
NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet has defended his handling of the Covid Omicron wave. Source: AAP

Premier Dominic Perrottet said the rising number of deaths was a "difficult reality" on Wednesday.

But he said while the health system was under pressure, the state was tracking better than expected.

Victoria reported 21,966 new Covid-19 cases and a further 15 deaths on Thursday.

Major breakthrough for Covid pills

On Thursday, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) confirmed it has provisionally approved the use of two oral Covid-19 treatments.

The Therapeutic Goods Administration has granted provisional approval to the Pfizer-made Paxlovid, along with Lagevrio, made by pharmaceutical company Merck Sharp and Dohme.

The treatments will be able to be used in adults with COVID-19 who do not require additional oxygen but are at risk of hospitalisation or death from the virus.

The Paxlovid pill has been described as a "game changer" in the US.

"We have a lot of powerful tools to understand how viruses work, and once we understand how they work, we target various aspects of their [the virus's] life cycle to make new drugs," Dr Patrick Jackson from the University of Virginia's Infectious Disease Division told 13News Now.

"I think it really has potential to be a game changer."

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