On Monday, Australia reported its first confirmed death related to the Omicron variant of coronavirus amid a spike in daily case numbers. The authorities; however, do not intend to impose new restrictions and have stated that hospitalizations continue to remain low.

The man, in his 80s, had underlying health conditions. The authorities have not provided any further details about the Omicron death, and have only revealed that the man contracted the infection at an elderly care facility and died in a Sydney hospital. New South Wales’ Health epidemiologist Christine Selvey said that this was the first known death in the state tied to the new variant.

The country had to postpone some parts of a staged reopening owing to a fresh outbreak. A total of six deaths due to COVID-19 were reported in Australia the previous day, all in NSW and Victoria… (Reuters, December 27, 2021)