Despite the arrival of winter, vaccine and mask mandates are being eased in some parts of the country.
Victoria's Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton says health authorities are bracing for a rise in reinfections and hospital admissions due to the greater ability of the BA.4/BA.5 sub-variant to evade immunity from vaccines and prior infection.An Omicron sub-variant of COVID-19 that can evade vaccine immunity is on the rise in Victoria, with authorities warning it is on track to be the state's major strain in line with virus spread in NSW and Queensland.
"This is because the strain has a greater ability than BA.2 to evade immunity provided by vaccination and earlier COVID-19 infection." Medical experts last week renewed calls for people to get boosters in the wake of rising infections and hospitalisations. Several states have started unwinding restrictions including allowing unvaccinated school staff back to work, lifting bans on unvaccinated visitors at nursing homes or relaxing mask requirements at airports.
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