Man in his 80s dies with COVID-19 and 1000 new Omicron cases in Canberra

There were 149 people with COVID-19 in hospital in the 24 hours to Wednesday at 8pm.

Of those, two patients are in the ICU but none are on ventilators.

There is a seven day rolling average of 927.

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The ACT's COVID-19 death toll is now 90.

Health authorities have said they are unsure which way the COVID wave will go in the ACT.

Experts have predicted cases could fall, while government modelling showed a peak was still to come.

Meanwhile, experienced criminal defence lawyers have contradicted the ACT government's suggestion that legal visits are continuing at Canberra's jail.

The Canberra Times revealed on Wednesday that a third major outbreak has hit the Alexander Maconochie Centre, infecting at least 29 inmates since it was detected last weekend.

The country's chief medical officer has upgraded the federal response to monkeypox in the wake of the World Health Organisation listing the disease as a global emergency.

Monkeypox has now been declared a communicable disease incident of national significance.

The declaration means the response to monkeypox will have national coordination in order to assist states and territories with outbreaks.

There have been 44 cases of monkeypox so far in Australia, mostly from returning international travellers.

Chief medical officer Professor Paul Kelly said work was already under way to ensure a quick response to the disease.

"Although I have declared monkeypox to be a communicable disease incident of national significance, it is far less harmful than COVID-19," he said in a statement.

- With Jasper Lindell, Blake Foden and AAP

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