Coronavirus Australia: Victoria records 1841 new COVID-19 cases, 12 deaths

Victoria has recorded 1841 new locally acquired COVID-19 cases and 12 deaths, as the state opens its borders to fully vaccinated people from Sydney without quarantine on arrival.

The health department confirmed the state now has 22,598 active cases.

There were 78,928 tests processed and 38,881 COVID-19 vaccine doses administered at state-run hubs on Tuesday.

The new deaths take the toll from the current outbreak to 175.

From midnight on Tuesday, there are no more red zones in NSW, with greater Sydney now an orange zone.

Travellers from the Greater Sydney region, including the Blue Mountains, Central Coast, Shellharbour and Wollongong, will still need an orange zone permit to enter Victoria.

But the rules will be different for people who are not fully vaccinated.

They will have to isolate on arrival, get tested within 72 hours, and remain in isolation until they receive a negative result.

The rest of NSW will become a green zone, but travellers still need a permit.

Broken Hill in NSW and Shepparton in Victoria will rejoin the cross-border community area, meaning residents will not need permits to cross the state border.

The state continues to inch closer to its 70 per cent vaccination reopening target, with 68 per cent of people over 16 now having both doses.

NSW HAS 283 NEW COVID-19 CASES, 7 DEATHS

NSW has reported 283 new locally acquired cases of COVID-19 and seven deaths as the state prepares to resume non-urgent elective surgery next week.

In the 24-hour reporting period to 8pm on Tuesday, 92.3 per cent of people 16 and older have had one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine while 81.6 per cent of people are fully vaccinated.

There are 552 people in NSW hospitals with COVID, 124 of them in ICU.

Non-urgent elective surgery will resume in Greater Sydney next week after a two- month hiatus during the height of the recent COVID-19 outbreak in the state.

NSW Health says high vaccination rates and falling case numbers mean it can safely give the green light to overnight elective surgery, which was suspended on August 2 in public hospitals and three weeks later in private hospitals.

Surgeries will be capped at 75 per cent capacity at public and private facilities within Greater Sydney, including the Nepean Blue Mountains region from Monday.

Day surgery returned on October 5 across both public and private systems.

Generally, non-urgent elective surgery continued in regional and rural NSW during the outbreak, although temporary restrictions were put in place in response to local outbreaks, such as in western NSW and far west NSW.

Meanwhile, people in NSW who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 can now travel to Victoria without needing to quarantine.

Relaxed requirements now apply to fully vaccinated travellers who have been in red or orange zones and the border bubble has been reinstated for Broken Hill and Shepparton.

From midnight Victoria scrapped red zones that applied to Greater Sydney areas so anyone who has been in Sydney, the Blue Mountains, the Central Coast, Shellharbour and Wollongong can enter Victoria on an orange zone permit, without quarantine or testing.

Anyone who isn’t vaccinated requires a permit, must isolate, get tested within 72 hours, and stay isolated until they receive a negative COVID-19 test result.

The remainder of regional NSW is now classified as green zones and vaccinated residents will simply require a permit to enter Victoria.

People coming into NSW from Victoria have to stay at home for 14 days but can leave home for essentials such as food, exercise, medical care or work or study if they can’t do that at home.

STATE-BY-STATE CASE BREAKDOWN

VIC - 1841 new local cases, 12 deaths

NSW - 283 new local cases, seven deaths

QLD - TBA

ACT - TBA

SA - TBA

WA - TBA

TAS - TBA

NT - TBA