Canberra no longer has any active cases of COVID-19 in hospital for the first time in months, but at least one patient remains there from the effects of the virus.
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There was no one in ACT hospitals with an active case of COVID-19 as at 8pm on Tuesday. It is the first time since August 20 that no one has been listed as an active case in a Canberra hospital.
However, the patient who was reported as being on a ventilator in intensive care on Monday remains in hospital, ACT Health said in a statement on Tuesday evening.
"This individual remains in hospital; however, they have been 'cleared' or released from isolation in accordance with the national guidelines. This means they are no longer an 'active' or infectious case of COVID-19 and as a result, they are no longer included in our COVID-19 hospitalisation figures," ACT Health said in a statement.
"We have not changed how we report our hospitalisation figures. This is consistent with how they have been presented since the start of the pandemic. We have changed our wording to present this in a clearer manner to the community."
Earlier, questions were raised about ACT Health's changed phrasing in the reporting of hospitalisations following Tuesday's update.
On Wednesday, it reported no "active cases in ACT hospitals", compared with referring to "patients in ACT hospitals" previously.
Tuesday's figures reported one patient in hospital with the virus, who was in ICU and also on a ventilator amid 18 cases recorded to 8pm on Monday.
Meanwhile, the ACT reported nine new cases of COVID-19 in the 24 hours to 8pm on Tuesday.
The new cases bring the active total to 150, while the number of cases associated with this outbreak now stands at 1769.
The percentage of the eligible population who are now fully vaccinated has reached 95.6 per cent.
There were 1910 negative tests returned in the 24 hours to 9am on Wednesday.
Focus on boosters
Chief Minister Andrew Barr has urged Canberrans to get their COVID-19 booster jabs as soon as they become eligible, so that the population is protected in time for winter.
ACT government clinics have administered 8000 booster doses since the program began to roll out last week, while thousands of vaccinations have taken place through targeted equity programs.
Vaccination certificates will now be available to download to the Check In CBR app, though Canberra still doesn't require people to show proof of vaccination status on entry to venues.
Health Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith said the certificate had been added to the app following feedback, which suggested people wanted a way to quickly show their vaccine status.
Around Australia
NSW has recorded 216 new COVID-19 cases and three deaths in the 24 hours to 8pm on Monday.
Across the state 94 per cent of the population aged over 16 years have been vaccinated with their first dose, while 90.1 per cent are fully vaccinated.
There are 235 COVID-19 patients in hospital with 41 in ICU.
Victoria recorded 941 new cases, while eight people in the state died.
There are 657 Victorians hospitalised, 117 in intensive care and 69 requiring ventilation.
Eighty-four per cent of the state's population aged over 16 is fully vaccinated.
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