Victoria has recorded no new coronavirus cases or deaths for the 27th day in a row.
Victoria is tomorrow set to hit the milestone of 28 days without community transmission. Photo: AFP
Health authorities have received 12,862 test results in the past 24 hours, down from yesterday's large total of 16,409.
The last active case was cleared and discharged from hospital on Monday.
Victoria is just one day away from hitting the milestone of 28 days without community transmission, which is widely considered the target for elimination.
However, Premier Daniel Andrews yesterday said there was likely to be a "handful" of cases remaining in the community that had not been detected through testing.
"This is a wildly infectious virus, you've always got to assume there's more out there than you know," he said.
Under Victoria's original roadmap for reopening, 28 days without new cases was one of the conditions for moving to the "Covid normal" level of restrictions.
The latest version of the roadmap says Victoria is expected to move to "Covid Safe Summer" in December.
Victoria is set to start accepting international arrivals again from 7 December.
The state government is yet to unveil the full details of how the revamped hotel quarantine system will operate, but Andrews has said it would feature advance contact tracing and frequent testing of staff.
The hotel quarantine inquiry led by former judge Jennifer Coate will hold its final hearing tomorrow.
Professor Tony Blakely is an epidemiologist specialising in public health at the University of Melbourne told Morning Report that New South Wales had reached the 28-day milestone of no known community transmission on Monday this week.
"So things have changed over here, we've actually moved into an elimination state other than South Australia of course which had a breach 10 days ago or so, but they've actually managed to contain that very quickly, rather dramatically and it's looking like Australia's moving into elimination land like New Zealand."
Blakely said Australian state borders were now pretty much open within the country, with the exception of South Australia while it deals with its outbreak.
"So for example Queensland opened its borders to New South Wales and Victoria in the last few days from December ... so there should be reasonably good movement around the country for Christmas."
He warned that would bring risks since Christmas could become a super spreader event if the virus was picked up and moved around at that time - but Blakely believed it was a risk worth taking.
Blakely said he thought it was time for Aotearoa to accept that Covid-19 had been eliminated in much of Australia and consider opening its borders to some Australians.
"With much improved surveillance, contact tracing, testing, public awareness you can stamp this thing out, it's not guaranteed and therefore in my view at least having somewhat more open borders it makes countries that are operating in the same modus operandi is a worthwhile thing to do."
- ABC / RNZ
