Here’s a quick wrap of the COVID-19 news and case numbers from each Australian jurisdiction for the past week, as reported on Friday, January 20, 2023.
The states and territories are now reporting their COVID-19 statistics weekly instead of through the daily updates that were provided from the early days of the pandemic.
This story will be updated throughout the day, so if you do not see your state or territory check back later.
You can jump to the COVID-19 information you want to read by clicking below.
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New South Wales
There have been 9,062 new COVID-19 cases recorded, down from 14,053 last week.
NSW has recorded 131 deaths, although not all COVID-19 fatalities occurred during the reporting period.
There are 1,236 people in hospital, 31 of those are in intensive care.
Victoria
In Victoria, there are 4,912 new COVID-19 cases, last week there were 7,908.
There have been 156 deaths reported, but with a delay on reporting deaths, not all fatalities occurred in the past week.
The state has 341 people in hospital with COVID-19, 16 of those are in intensive care.
Northern Territory
There have been 319 new COVID-19 cases recorded in the latest reporting period, down from 355 last week.
There are 24 people in hospital with COVID-19.
No deaths have been reported this week.
One thing to know: ATAGI is considering a fifth COVID-19 vaccine dose
Winter is months away but the federal government says it’s getting prepared to ensure Australia is in the best position when it comes to COVID-19.
This includes seeking advice from the Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) on a fifth vaccine dose.
It’s currently available in Australia for adults who are severely immunocompromised, but ATAGI is considering whether to approve it for more people.
However, before we get to the fifth dose, let’s look at how many Australians have already been boosted and how many doses authorities are recommending.
Queensland’s COVID-19 protocols downgraded from amber to green, so what’s changed?
Under the amber protocols, masks were recommended in health settings, on public transport and indoors settings where social distancing was impossible.
Switching to green means the mask recommendations have lifted, but they may still be requested in some healthcare settings and in aged care.
One more thing: Rural China is ill-equipped to handle COVID-19’s spread and Xi Jinping is ‘worried’
Experts are warning of a deadly COVID-19 spread to rural areas of China, where medical resources are limited and the population is aging, as millions of people begin travelling home as part of the final Lunar New Year travel rush.
Speaking publicly ahead of the Lunar New Year travel rush, even China’s President Xi Jinping expressed his concern.
“I am most worried about the rural areas and farmers. Medical facilities are relatively weak in rural areas, thus prevention is difficult and the task is arduous,” Mr Xi said earlier this week.
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