Federal Health Minister shares grim COVID-19 prediction

Australia’s new Health Minister has warned COVID-19 case numbers and hospitalisations are likely to continue to increase for at least a month.

Speaking to 3AW’s Neil Mitchell, Mark Butler said “all of the modelling indicates that case numbers and hospitalisations have further to go over probably the next four to six weeks”.

He said the true number of COVID-19 infections “may be more than twice the official number”.

Despite surging cases and hospitalisations, Mr Butler says we’re unlikely to see the numbers in ICU that we saw in January because the Delta variant is no longer circulating.

“We expect ICU admissions to be markedly lower … probably still only a third of what they were in January,” he said.

But data from OzSAGE, a multi-disciplinary network of Australian experts, this morning reveals COVID-19 is now the leading cause of death in Australia.

Press PLAY below to hear the Health Minister’s grim warning