Amendments have been made to Victoria’s COVID-19 regulations to better align with pandemic orders across the country.
Starting on Friday, positive COVID-19 cases with no symptoms on day five of their isolation period are allowed to leave isolation early, instead of completing the full seven days as per previous pandemic regulations.
People who work in high-risk settings still need to isolate for the full seven days.
People leaving isolation after five days cannot visit or work at sensitive settings including hospitals, residential aged care, disability care settings or in-home care for two days, or if they have COVID-19 symptoms.
People who work in other settings must notify their workplace that they have completed isolation if they are attending work on site.
Masks are also no longer required on domestic flights.
Minister for Health Mary-Anne Thomas said the changes to the regulations better reflected the current pandemic circumstances, and were designed to ensure consistency across the nation.
“The adjustments are designed to keep Victorians protected, while also helping people safely manage their own risk and allowing them to get on with their lives,” she said.
People who leave isolation after five days are recommended to do rapid antigen tests in the days following their isolation and test negative before attending their workplace or other settings of higher risk, and to wear a mask in indoor settings outside their home.
There are no changes to the current isolation requirements for close contacts, who can continue to leave home each day, provided they continue to test negative on a rapid antigen test.
Close contacts who have confirmed cases must also notify their workplace that they have completed self-isolation if attending work onsite.
The amendments can be viewed on the Department of Health website at www.health.gov.au.