BALLARAT COVID UPDATE | MONDAY, OCTOBER 18
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NEW CASES: 3
ACTIVE CASES: 69
UPDATE, 12.25PM: Ballarat has recorded three new COVID cases in the 24 hours until midnight on Sunday.
The new figures indicate Ballarat has managed to prevent significant spread in recent days, with the seven-day average sitting at 5.14 cases per day.
The active case number dropped to 69, indicating eight people have also recovered in the last 24 hours.
Further afield, there were 10 new cases in Moorabool and none in Hepburn, Golden Plains and Pyrenees.
The news comes as yet another school closes today due a confirmed case.
EARLIER, 9AM: Victoria has recorded 1903 new COVID cases as the state counts down the days until a significant easing of restrictions.
There were also seven deaths recorded on the 24 hours to midnight Sunday.
More details on the cases will be released later today.
There was 69,825 tests conducted.
The seven-day new case average in Victoria is now 1862 cases per day.
In Ballarat, new COVID cases remain relatively low when compared to other major regional cities.
There were nine new cases confirmed over the weekend, while the number of active cases continues to hover around the low 70s.
According to the latest Ballarat data on Sunday, there was 74 active cases in the city.
Elsewhere in regional Victoria, Greater Shepparton (236 actives cases), Geelong (221), Mildura (214) and Latrobe (157) are all seeing far higher COVID numbers.
You can see all the Ballarat exposure sites here.
Meanwhile, Victoria is set to scrap hotel quarantine for international travellers fully vaccinated against COVID-19, as the state prepares for an early exit from its long-running sixth lockdown.
However, Premier Daniel Andrews says Victoria will not follow NSW in abolishing quarantine altogether for double-dosed international arrivals from November 1.
Instead, he has foreshadowed travellers will be able to isolate at home for fewer than 14 days.
"It will be less," he told Seven's Sunrise.
"If you are double-dose vaccinated, you will be able to quarantine at home and hotel quarantine will be a thing of the past."
IN OTHER NEWS
The premier has also confirmed Victoria will not lock down the entire state moving forward and instead opt for targeted restrictions in "very narrow circumstances".
"No more statewide lockdowns. What we are moving away from is instead of locking people down, we are locking people out," he said.
"If you are not double-dose vaccinated, you won't be able to go to the pub."
Changes will also be made to isolation orders, with fully vaccinated people who are identified as a primary close contact of a confirmed case they do not live with having to quarantine for seven days rather than 14.
Restrictions will ease further when 80 per cent of the eligible population has received both vaccine doses, forecast by some data analysts to be as early as October 31.
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