Construction on the Mickleham quarantine facility on Thursday.Credit:Joe Armao
More than 38,752 Victorians received a dose of a COVID-19 vaccine at a state-run clinic on Thursday. Victoria now has 21,324 active coronavirus cases.
Mr Foley said there were 695 people in the state’s hospitals with COVID-19. Of those,157 were in intensive care,and 101 were on a ventilator.
With a further 34 cases recorded in the region,Mildura’s week-long lockdown – which started at midnight last Friday – was extended by an additional seven days.
“Indeed,given the complexities of that outbreak across cross-border communities ...[the] local public health unit,the local health services[need time to] bring this into a more manageable situation,” Mr Foley said.
Victoria recorded 2179 new COVID-19 cases on Friday. Here’s the breakdown of where they were recorded:
Under the new border arrangements announced on Friday,travellers entering Victoria from red zones who aren’t fully vaccinated will still be required to quarantine for 14 days.
Children under the age of 12 who are not eligible to get vaccinated will travel under a parent’s permit and the requirements will be determined by that adult’s vaccination status.
People coming from “orange zones” will no longer be required to get tested for COVID-19 and isolate until they receive a negative result.
Victorian COVID-19 response commander Jeroen Weimar said 88 per cent of Victorian residents aged 16 and over had received one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine,and 63 per cent were fully vaccinated. Seventy per cent of those aged 12 to 15 have had their first dose.
A COVID-19 vaccine mandate came into effect for all authorised Victorian workers on Friday,with about 1.25 million people now required to be vaccinated with a first dose to keep attending their workplaces.
Those who are yet to have their first jab can continue working if they prove they have a booking to receive their first dose by October 22,which is next Friday.
The deadline for a first dose does not apply to workers who were already subject to a vaccine mandate in place under the Chief Health Officer’s directions before October 1. This group includes construction,health and aged care workers,and teachers.
All authorised workers must have their second jab by November 26 to keep attending their workplaces.
Mr Foley said public health orders mandating vaccinations for the state’s authorised workers would be in place for a “substantial period of time,well into 2022”.
He said those who refused to get vaccinated because they expected the mandate would soon ease were taking a “huge and foolish risk” if they thought “the expiration of these current orders will see that obligation mysteriously vanish”.
“We have to deliver those booster shots. We have to continue to make sure that as we open up internationally,we have in place restrictions and safeguards ... that return us to the kind of lifestyle that we had,as close as possible[to] pre-pandemic,but it has to be done safely,” Mr Foley said.
“The key to that safety is being double-dose vaccinated. If you choose to place yourself outside of that system,then you have to be prepared to wear the consequences of your actions.”
Mr Foley explained businesses that failed to comply with the vaccination mandate for authorised workers faced fines,saying it was largely up to employers to sight and manage their staff members’ proof of vaccinations.
Etto Pasta Bar co-owner Dave Ansett said most of his 50-odd staff members – who are spread across several restaurants – were double-dosed as of Friday,with only a couple yet to get their second jab.
He started having the conversation about mandatory vaccinations with his employees months ago,in anticipation of a government announcement.
Etto Pasta Bar founders Stephane Meyer (left) and Dave Ansett.
“At that stage,out of the 50 staff,we probably had six staff who were somewhere between a little anxious and very anxious about it,” Mr Ansett said.
“At the point where the government actually mandated it,all but two of those staff had already been and[received] their first vaccination.”
Mr Ansett said he and his business partner pushed the message that it was the responsibility of all staff members to keep their customers and each other safe,reasoning the government was likely to take the decision out of businesses’ hands,as eventuated.
“It was actually really valuable to have that in the toolkit because then it’s not just about us,it’s about if you want to work in hospitality,then this is the lie of the land,” he said.
Mr Ansett thought some business owners who did not like having tough conversations with their employees might struggle with the mandate. Looking ahead,he was concerned about how his employees would turn away unvaccinated and potentially abusive customers.
“We got supplied with posters to put up in our window saying all of our staff are vaccinated,and we’ve made a decision not to put them up because we think it’ll make our business a target,” he said.
Authoritiesannounced on Thursday that,from 11.59pm,the ACT would be downgraded from a “red zone” to an orange zone under Victoria’s traffic light travel permit system.
The change is in line with lockdown lifting in the territory,and means people in the ACT who are not residents of Victoria are now allowed to come into the state. It also means Victorian residents returning from the territory no longer have to quarantine for 14 days.
Residents and non-residents alike must isolate upon arriving in Victoria,get tested for COVID-19 within 72 hours of arriving,and stay isolated until they return a negative test result.
Premier Daniel Andrews confirmed Victoria remained on track to follow its road map out of lockdown next week,despite the new national record for daily case numbers on Thursday.
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