It has been almost two weeks since Australia has recorded a brand new native an infection of the coronavirus, Well being Minister Greg Hunt said at a news conference on Friday.
Friday marked the twelfth consecutive day of zero circumstances of group transmission.
Well being officers report 84 energetic circumstances of COVID-19 in Australia, with six new internationally acquired circumstances within the final 24 hours. Twenty persons are hospitalized with the virus, according to the country’s health ministry, however Hunt mentioned no sufferers have been within the intensive care unit. The nation didn’t file any coronavirus-related deaths within the earlier 24 hours.
“That is a testomony [not just] to the work of our medical professionals, our public well being groups, however Australians in every single place for the best way by which they’ve noticed the distancing necessities, the best way they’ve protected one another, the best way that they’ve come out for testing,” Hunt informed reporters.
Cartoons on the Coronavirus
For the reason that first COVID-19 case was reported in Australia a few yr in the past, the nation has seen 28,800 complete circumstances and 909 complete deaths.
Over the past 24 hours globally, Hunt mentioned there have been roughly 630,000 new virus circumstances and 17,422 lives misplaced. The worldwide tally is greater than 101.56 million circumstances and greater than 2.19 million deaths.
Within the final two weeks, officers report 9 million new confirmed circumstances and greater than 200,000 deaths.
“All of that places into perspective the nice challenges that we have had in Australia, and while it has been troublesome, we’ve been mercifully spared the trauma and agony on such a large scale from all over the world,” Hunt mentioned. “There’s been loss, there’s been heartbreak, there’s been hardship and we acknowledge all of these.”
Whereas many international locations have already begun vaccinating their residents, Australia is anticipating starting vaccinations late subsequent month and has reached agreements with 5 vaccine producers: Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Novavax, the College of Queensland, and the COVAX Facility, a world facility, Hunt mentioned.
He expects a robust vaccine provide with completion on monitor earlier than the top of October.
