Amid record cases deaths Victoria looks to cut Pfizer dose interval as restrictions ease

Melburnians awoke to slightly eased restrictions on Wednesday as the state recorded 950 new local coronavirus cases and seven deaths, and the government looked to cut the interval between Pfizer doses this week.

The case numbers are the highest recorded so far in Victoria, and the number of deaths is also the highest recorded in the state this year.

Meanwhile, nine patients and one staff member tested positive for COVID-19 at the Royal Talbot Rehabilitation Centre at Kew.

A spokeswoman for Austin Health, which operates the centre, said the nine patients had since been transferred from its Mellor Ward to Austin Hospital, where they remained in stable conditions.

The staff member who tested positive was now in quarantine, as are the remaining Mellor Ward patients. All patients and staff would also be tested for COVID-19 as a precaution, the spokeswoman said.

Victorian health authorities said they will start alerting people who have tested positive for COVID-19 via text, rather than with a phone call, in areas where there are high case numbers.

Health Department deputy secretary Kate Matson said the text messages included a link to a form that asks a number of questions to help prioritise cases so those at the highest risk could be identified.

“So we can provide triage and ensure we address with a phone call the highest-risk cases,” Ms Matson said. “It will ask if anyone at home is being looked after by that confirmed case, such as children or someone with a disability.

“It will ask if that person needs support to help isolate at home, such as groceries, medication or income.

“It will ask if they are vaccinated and we’ll confirm that against our own records, and ask if there’s been any exposures to high-risk settings such as hospital, aged care, childcare, or at the moment, anywhere in regional Victoria.”

Everyone who tests positive will still get a phone call following that text message, but the phone calls will be prioritised in order of the highest-risk cases.

Ms Matson said initial interviews with close contacts were now more of a “household interview”, as opposed to one-on-one interviews with every single primary close contact, as was the practice a couple of months ago. She stressed authorities would always continue to manage and treat differently sensitive settings such as hospitals and aged care facilities.

“Should case numbers increase further, although it’s all in our collective will and efforts to try and maintain them, we will adapt the approach again and again and refine it based on risk,” Ms Matson said.

The change in notifications came as seven people dies with COVID-19.

Five of those who died were from Hume in Melbourne’s north-west: two women in their 80s, one man in his 80s, a woman in her 70s, and a woman in her 50s.

The remaining two people who died were a woman in her 80s and a woman in her 90s, both from Whittlesea in Melbourne’s outer north.

Health Minister Martin Foley said there were 371 people in hospital with COVID-19 in the state. Of those people, 81 were in intensive care and 55 were on a ventilator.

Of the more than 15,000 people in Victoria who have contacted coronavirus since July 12, 88 per cent were unvaccinated at their time of diagnosis.

Acting Chief Health Officer Ben Cowie said 79 per cent of the cases since July were eligible for a COVID-19 vaccination but of the people admitted to hospital with COVID-19 since July, 86 per cent were not vaccinated.

“And 98 per cent of individuals admitted to our intensive care units with COVID-19 were unvaccinated - 98 per cent,” Professor Cowie said.

“So, [this is the sort] of data that [shows] how powerful all these vaccines are against preventing infection and especially, preventing serious illness, ending up in hospital and losing your life.”

Of today’s 950 cases, according to Professor Cowie, there are:

Hundreds in Melbourne’s northern suburbs, including 240 in Hume, 102 in Whittlesea, 63 in Moreland, and 28 in Darebin;

Thirty-one are from within Melbourne City Council;

In the western suburbs, 55 in Melton, 54 in Wyndham, 63 in Brimbank, 29 in Moonee Valley, and 22 in Maribyrnong;

In the south-eastern suburbs, 50 in Casey, 14 in Cardinia, 18 in Port Philip, 16 in Greater Dandenong, and 10 in Stonnington;

In the eastern suburbs, 15 in Manningham, and six in Boroondara;

In regional Victoria, 30 new cases, including nine in Mitchell; four in Warrnambool; two in Moorabool; two in Wellington; one each in Strathbogie, the Surf Coast, Ballarat, Murrindindi, Baw Baw, South Gippsland and Corangamite; and four in the Latrobe City Council area.

Professor Cowie said there are now 225 active coronavirus cases in regional Victoria.

Mr Foley said authorities had “little or no choice” to act quickly in the Latrobe Valley with a seven-day lockdown from 11.59pm on Tuesday after cases spiked in the regional area.

The cases have been linked to an illegal social gathering that was held over the weekend, with people from 19 households in the area testing positive for coronavirus.

Mr Foley said given the gathering happened on Saturday night, police were investigating, and “you could draw your links that [the gathering] might well have had some crossover with the AFL grand final”.

“I apologise for the short notice but the strong advice from the public health team was given the rapidly deteriorating situation, these strong measures to keep that community as safe as possible were required,” Mr Foley said.

“We really had little or no choice through the public health advice but to act, and to act quickly.

“We expect that the testing demand is high and the reports that we’ve had this morning is that that is precisely the case.

“We ask those with symptoms, and those who have been contacted as close contacts of cases, of which there are a growing number … to come forward and get tested.”

As Latrobe City Council went into lockdown, moving under the same restrictions as Melbourne but without the curfew, restrictions eased elsewhere.

The eased restrictions overnight mean the travel limit has been extended from 10 kilometres to 15 kilometres for residents of metropolitan Melbourne and Mitchell Shire, non-contact outdoor activities including golf are back on the agenda and long-suffering parents can again remove their masks to eat and drink at playgrounds.

Wednesday’s new coronavirus cases come from 61,322 tests. There are now 9890 active cases of COVID-19 in Victoria while 34,028 people rolled up their sleeves for a coronavirus jab.

Professor Cowie said in the next seven days there were 7700 first-dose Pfizer appointments available in the state, and 8800 first-dose AstraZeneca appointments.

The Victorian government is preparing to shorten the gap between first and second doses of Pfizer to speed up the state’s vaccine program and reach inoculation targets faster, as soon as it receives certainty of supply, Mr Foley said.

“If that advice comes in and we can lock in those changes, we will lock them in the minute we possibly can, because everyone wants to bring forward those double-dose dates,” Mr Foley said.

“But we can’t do it at the expense of canceling first vaccination programs.”

The government is waiting on formal confirmation of Pfizer supply for state-run hubs for the final week of October. Federal government sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said Victoria’s hubs would receive 265,000 doses in both the last weeks of October.

However, the Victorian government has only been notified of the third week’s supply.

Meanwhile, a regional hair salon, thrift shop and food store were among the more than 30 new exposure sites listed on Wednesday.

Victoria Racing club eyes Melbourne Cup crowds

Victoria Racing Club is targeting crowds of 11,500 for some or all of the four days of Melbourne Cup week.

In a statement, the club’s chief executive Steve Rosich said it continues to work closely with the Victorian government on its Melbourne Cup carnival scenario planning, but advised its members today of the 11,500 target.

Earlier this month, Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said he was aiming to have 80 per cent of the state’s eligible population fully vaccinated by Melbourne Cup Day, leaving the door open for crowds at the track.

The state government’s road map predicts Victoria will hit the 80 per cent fully vaccinated coverage mark, which will trigger a relaxation of some restrictions for those who have received two doses, about November 5.

With Damien Ractliffe and Erin Pearson

The Morning Edition newsletter is our guide to the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up here.

Erin Pearson covers crime for The Age. Most recently she was a police reporter at the Geelong Advertiser.Connect via Twitter or email.

Share this post