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Coronavirus (COVID-19) daily update

This Chief Health Officer update is intended to provide clinicians and the Victorian public with information about the number of confirmed cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) in Victoria as well as relevant public health response activities in Victoria. Chief Health Officer Alerts will continue to be issued when there are changes to the public health advice related to coronavirus (COVID-19).

12/2/2021

What's new?

  • Victoria recorded five new locally acquired cases of coronavirus. These cases were announced yesterday.
  • The total number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases reported in Victoria is now 20,465.
  • There were no new deaths and the state’s death toll stands at 820.
  • The number of active cases in Victoria is 19, which is made up of 12 locally acquired cases, an increase of five since yesterday, and 7 cases in returned travellers in hotel quarantine, a decrease of three since yesterday.
  • A total of 4,652,545 test results have been received. This is an increase of 24,209 since yesterday.
  • You can find further details in today’s coronavirus (COVID-19) media release.
  • The DHHS website has full details in the interactive daily report.

Holiday Inn Melbourne Airport case 

  • Yesterday, five individuals tested positive to coronavirus and were linked to the Holiday Inn cases, taking the total cases to 13.
  • Four of the five cases are household primary close contacts of currently confirmed cases. The cases were already isolating.
  • Another case is a staff member at the Holiday Inn and was tested as a primary close contact and returned a positive result yesterday.
  • Prior to being informed they were a primary close contact, one case worked while infectious at Brunetti Café Melbourne Airport.
  • Interviews are underway and known exposure sites will be published online as soon as possible.
  • Public exposure sites have been identified and have been published at Case locations and outbreaks page.
  • Anyone who has visited the exposure sites during these dates and times must immediately isolate, get tested, and remain isolated for 14 days from the time they were at the site - not just until they receive a negative result.
  • Visit the Where to get tested page to view testing sites nearest you and see real-time waiting information. We thank people for their patience and apologise for any delays.

Grand Hyatt

  • The Department is continuing to follow up close contacts of a Hotel Quarantine worker at the Grand Hyatt Hotel who tested positive to coronavirus (COVID-19) on 3 February.

New directions

  • The whole of Victoria will move to circuit-breaker action from 11:59pm on Friday 12 February until 11:59pm on Wednesday 17 February.
  • During this period, people must stay within 5km of their home other than for four permitted reasons: 
    • Shopping once per day for necessary goods and services when required 
    • Caregiving and compassionate reasons 
    • Essential work or permitted education 
    • Exercise for two hours a day with household members or intimate partner, or one other person not from the household. 
  • Face masks must now be worn everywhere (unless an exemption applies), except in private homes. There will also be no household visitors or private gatherings.
  • Public gatherings are not permitted.
  • Schools will close, however they will remain open for vulnerable children or children of essential workers.
  • Childcare and early childhood care centres remain open.
  • Higher education is closed, with remote learning in place only.
  • Places of worship are closed. In-person religious gatherings are not permitted but may be broadcast.
  • Weddings are not permitted unless for end-of-life or other exceptional reasons. Ceremonies must involve only five persons (including the two persons being married, celebrant, and two witnesses).
  • Funerals (indoor and outdoor) must involve no more than 10 people (plus those necessary to conduct the funeral).
  • Hairdressing and beauty services, outdoor auctions, indoor physical recreation, community venues such as libraries, sporting venues and outdoor community sports are not permitted.
  • All swimming pools are closed.
  • Non-essential retail will close. Cafes and restaurants will revert to takeaway service only.
  • There will be no capacity to visit private residential aged care or public or private hospitals. No visitors are permitted into health care settings, except for end-of-life reasons, as a support partner for birth, or a parent to accompany a child.
  • The Australian Open tennis tournament will continue, however without attending crowds and only a minimum number of staff for the event to be run safely.

Western Australia zone change

  • The Perth metropolitan area, the Peel region and the South West region of Western Australia have moved from a red zone to an orange zone under Victoria’s ‘traffic light’ travel permit system.
  • People in orange zones can apply for a permit to enter Victoria provided they have not been in close contact with a coronavirus (COVID-19) case and do not have any coronavirus (COVID19) symptoms.
  • On arrival in Victoria, orange zone permit holders must isolate at their home or accommodation, get a coronavirus (COVID-19) test, and continue isolating until they have received a negative result.
  • Victoria’s travel permit system provides the Department of Health the contact details of arrivals from orange and green zone areas, allowing the Department to advise them of any updated directions should the public health situation change in any state.
  • To apply for a travel permit to enter Victoria, visit the Service Victoria website.

New South Wales zone changes

  • From 6:00pm 8 February, the Cumberland Local Government Area (LGA) in New South Wales will move from an orange zone to a green zone under Victoria’s ‘traffic light’ travel permit system. 
  • People in green zones may apply for a permit to enter Victoria provided they have not been in close contact with a coronavirus (COVID-19) case and do not have any coronavirus (COVID-19) symptoms. On arrival in Victoria, they must monitor for symptoms and abide by local directions. 

Testing sites and expanded testing

  • Testing capacity near exposure sites is being enhanced.
  • All up, 20 testing facilities across Melbourne increased their operations yesterday. Hundreds of people were tested at the pop-up sites at Clarke Oval and Goonawarra Rec Reserve.
  • The pre-existing testing site at the Sunbury Respiratory Clinic is also operational – supported by larger sites about 20 minutes’ drive away in Tullamarine, Broadmeadows and St Albans.
  • The department is publishing expected wait times at testing sites as well as updated information about locations and hours of operation at Where to get tested.
  • Coronavirus (COVID-19) testing remains one of the best ways we can keep people safe and stay open, so we're asking anyone with symptoms to come and get tested – regardless of the time of year. 
  • Testing sites are also operating in the popular summer destinations at Torquay, Lorne, and the Mornington Peninsula.
  • Testing site details, including new and pop-up testing sites and opening hours, are available at Where to get tested.

Current advice to clinicians

  • Clinicians should be asking patients if they are from or if they have been in New South Wales, Western Australia or New Zealand and if so, to check the areas of risk defined by the NSW, WA and NZ governments and recommended actions.
  • Statement on Rapid Antigen Testing for SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) diagnosis in symptomatic persons (Word).
  • Notifications to the department of a confirmed diagnosis of coronavirus (COVID-19) can be done online. You can submit an online form to our public health team, rather than calling us, saving you time and resolving your case load more efficiently.

COVID-19 testing criteria

  • Practitioners should test any patients who meet the clinical criteria below:
    • Fever OR chills in the absence of an alternative diagnosis that explains the clinical presentation* OR
    • Acute respiratory infection (e.g. cough, sore throat, shortness of breath, runny nose, or loss or changes in sense of smell or taste)
    • Note: testing is also recommended for people with new onset of other clinical symptoms consistent with coronavirus (COVID-19)** AND who are from the following cohorts: close contacts of a confirmed case of coronavirus (COVID-19); those who have returned from overseas in the past 14 days; or those who are healthcare or aged care workers. Testing is recommended for those cohorts with onset of other clinical symptoms**. Asymptomatic testing is not recommended at this stage except for targeted programs
    • *Clinical discretion applies including consideration of the potential for co-infection (e.g. concurrent infection with SARS-CoV-2 and influenza)
    • **headache, myalgia, stuffy nose, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea.
  • If referring your patients for coronavirus (COVID-19) testing, a list of testing locations can be found on the getting tested for coronavirus page.
  • If a symptomatic patient that presents for testing, confirms exposure to a known coronavirus (COVID-19) case within the past 14 days, and the outbreak definition is met, the test sample is to be treated as an ‘outbreak sample’.

Victoria’s restriction levels

  • The State of Emergency has been extended until Friday 26 February 2021 to allow the Chief Health Officer’s directions to remain in force.

Mental health resources

  • Many Victorians are feeling fatigued, isolated or lonely. If you are in need of support for your mental health there are mental health resources you can access on our website.
  • If Victorians are not safe at home, they can seek help and support at an Orange Door or other family violence support service. If you or someone you know is at risk or experiencing family violence, call 000 in an emergency or safe steps 24/7 crisis service on 1800 015 188.
  • The Partners in Wellbeing hotline (1300 375 330) is available for referrals from people who identify as LGBTIQ, multicultural, Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people, veterans and people experiencing homelessness.

Clinical information

Online resources

Consumer information

Contacts

Medical practitioners needing clinical information or to notify confirmed cases can contact the Department of Health and Human Services Communicable Diseases Section on 1300 651 160 (24 hours).

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