Yesterday, 7,350 vaccine doses were administered by Victoria's state-commissioned services. The total number of doses administered through state-run services is 4,954,810.
94.3 per cent of Victorians aged 12 and over have now had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 92.5 per cent have had two doses. This excludes the most recent Commonwealth data.
There are 392 COVID-19 cases in hospital in Victoria - 81 active cases in ICU, with 41 of those on a ventilator. There are an additional 37 cleared cases in ICU.
Victoria was notified of 1,240 new cases of COVID-19 yesterday. All cases were locally acquired except for one case which was acquired overseas. The 10 Local Government areas with the highest number of new cases are Casey, Whittlesea, Hume, Wyndham, Brimbank, Greater Dandenong, Melton, Moreland, Melbourne and Moonee Valley.
All locations containing new cases will be published today at Victorian COVID-19 data.
There are 13,093 active cases in Victoria. The total number of confirmed cases in Victoria since the beginning of the pandemic is 145,570.
Sadly, the Department was notified yesterday of four deaths of people all aged in their 70s. This brings the total number of deaths in Victoria since the pandemic began to 1,454.
76,033 COVID-19 tests were processed yesterday. The total number of tests performed in Victoria since the pandemic began is 16,456,673
There are currently more than 31,000 active primary close contacts in isolation in Victoria.
Updates
New Omicron cases
There were five new confirmed cases of the COVID-19 Omicron variant identified in Victoria yesterday. The total number of confirmed Omicron variant cases in Victoria is 24.
Of the Omicron cases in Victoria, 16 acquired their infection overseas and eight acquired their infection in Australia.
Public health authorities continue to respond to 32 confirmed COVID-19 cases linked to The Peel and Sircuit Bar. Close contacts linked to these venues can end their isolation period today if they have a negative result from a PCR test taken no earlier than yesterday.
We're still learning more about the Omicron variant and we continue to take careful steps to ensure the safety of everyone in the community.
The Department of Health had been taking a cautious approach to the designation of contacts of known Omicron cases. The Department directly advised a number of non-household contacts to get tested and quarantine for 7 days if fully vaccinated (or 14 days if not). These settings were applied on a case-by-case basis following public health review.
Going forward, contacts in Victoria are now following the standard protocols regardless of variant: household contacts quarantine for 7 or 14 days, but non-household contacts (such as social, workplace or education contacts) are advised to get a PCR test and isolate until they get a negative result. Cases and contacts can find more information about these protocols at Your COVID checklist.
The Department can still manage certain contacts (particularly at potential/likely super-spreader events) more cautiously, but this will be done on a case-by-case basis and by exception, and the Department will directly advise contacts in these situations.
All Victorians can play their part in reducing the spread of Omicron - or any other variant - by getting tested the moment they notice symptoms or as soon as they are told they are a contact, and practising COVIDSafe behaviours such as wearing masks, physical distancing, checking in and getting a booster when eligible.
Pre-Christmas booster blitz for State vaccination clinics
Capacity is being ramped up at state-run vaccination clinics to assist the Commonwealth's booster vaccine rollout before Christmas.
There are more than 1000 places to get vaccinated across Victoria as part of the Commonwealth's vaccination program, which includes GPs, pharmacies and state-run clinics.
Booster appointments can be booked online
