Victoria pauses all elective surgery during second wave

Meanwhile limited data suggests HIV does not bring a higher risk of contracting COVID-19 if it is being managed with antiretrovirals.

Welcome to The Medical Republic‘s COVID Catch-Up.

It’s the day’s COVID-19 news into one convenient post. Got any tips, comments or feedback? Email me at bianca@biancanogrady.com.

29 July

• Victoria pauses all private and public elective surgery.
• HIV not linked to increased risk of COVID-19 if treated, CDC says.
• Ethiopia vaccinates 14 million children against measles during pandemic.
• Latest confirmed COVID-19 infection numbers for Australia.

• Victoria has paused all elective surgery during this second wave of COVID-19 infections, a move that the AMA has welcomed as taking the pressure off already stretched healthcare resources. Only urgent surgeries can be booked in, but surgeries that have already been scheduled in metropolitan Melbourne can go ahead.
  The pause does not affect IVF procedures such as egg retrieval, because these are time-critical and only have a minimal impact on hospital capacity.
• HIV does not appear to be associated with a higher risk of contracting COVID-19 if it is being effectively managed with antiretroviral medications, the US Centers for Disease Control says. Limited data is available, but suggests that people with well managed HIV are at the same risk as the general population. However those with poorly-managed or untreated HIV may be at increased risk. The CDC also reassured people that there is no indication of potential shortages in the supply of antiretroviral medication or PrEP.
• Ethiopia has managed to vaccinate more than 14 million children against measles, despite being in the middle of a pandemic. The ten-day campaign went ahead with vaccination clinics being held in open and well-ventilated areas, healthcare workers being masked, and by including physical distancing, hand-washing and temperature checks. The goal was 15 million vaccinated children, and Ethiopia managed to achieve 96% coverage.
• Here are the confirmed COVID-19 infection numbers around Australia to 9pm Tuesday:
  National – 15,304, with 167 deaths and 275 currently hospitalised.
  ACT – 113
  NSW – 3699
  NT – 31
  QLD – 1076
  SA – 448
  TAS – 229
  VIC – 9049
  WA – 659