Medical experts have welcomed a decision by the federal government to list a new treatment on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme which lowers cholesterol levels and can reduce a person’s risk of heart attack or stroke. Health Minister Greg Hunt said more than 20,000 Australians would have access to Praluent, a treatment for people suffering from hypercholesterolaemia, which results in abnormally …

New South Wales has recorded 210 new locally acquired COVID-19 cases, with Health Minister Brad Hazzard warning the virus is “continuing to spread”. At least 32 of those 210 people were circulating in the community for all or part of their infectious period. Greater Sydney and surrounding regions are in lockdown until at least August 28, as health authorities battle …

Health authorities have identified a shopping mall in Sydney’s south-west as “a key venue of concern” amid fears customers could have been exposed to COVID-19 there for 11 days. NSW Health said anyone who attended the Campsie Centre between July 14 and 24 was deemed a close contact and must get tested, and isolate for 14 days regardless of the …

NSW recorded 110 new locally acquired COVID-19 cases in the 24 hours to 8:00pm yesterday. A total of 43 people were infectious while in the community. Nearly 84,000 people were tested in the past 24 hours, which is the highest number of tests NSW has ever recorded in one day. Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the high number of cases was …

People living in coronavirus outbreak areas should bring forward their second dose of AstraZeneca, according to updated advice from Australia’s expert panel on vaccines. The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI)’s latest advice states people in areas like Sydney should receive their second dose between four and eight weeks after their first dose. That is a change from waiting up to 12 weeks for the …

Greater Sydney, the Blue Mountains, Central Coast and Wollongong has entered a COVID-19 lockdown for two weeks in response to a growing virus outbreak. Four local government areas (LGAs) in Sydney had already been subjected to “stay at home orders”, but as the ultra-transmissible Delta COVID-19 variant spreads, authorities have taken more drastic action. A swathe of new social distancing restrictions have …

The number of COVID-19 cases in Sydney’s Bondi cluster has risen to 21, after NSW Health confirmed 10 new infections in its latest update. The increasing number of cases has led NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian to extend the state’s mask mandate for all indoor public venues to 12:01am on Thursday, July 1. “We will extend it to all of Greater Sydney …

Denmark’s team doctor says Christian Eriksen’s heart had stopped and that “he was gone” before being resuscitated with a defibrillator at the European Championship. Eriksen collapsed during Denmark’s opening Euro 2020 group game against Finland on Saturday and was given lengthy medical treatment before regaining consciousness. “He was gone,” said team doctor Morten Boesen, who led the work in giving Eriksen treatment …

An aged care worker at a facility in Melbourne’s west has been diagnosed with COVID-19, sending the home into lockdown. The worker at Arcare Maidstone was one of five locally acquired COVID-19 cases across Victoria reported Saturday. The healthcare worker was not showing symptoms when she last worked at the home on May 27, but later tested positive, Arcare said. …

Premier Gladys Berejiklian has urged NSW residents to avoid unnecessary travel to Victoria as the state deals with a growing COVID-19 outbreak. The Victorian coronavirus outbreak reached 26 cases this morning — with 11 new infections recorded overnight — and the state is expected to enter lockdown for at least a week. Ms Berejiklian said she was “worried about the evolving situation” …