The number of Australians admitted to hospitals with Covid-19 hit a record of about 5,450 on Monday, official data showed, as the spread of highly contagious new Omicron sub-variants strains the healthcare system nationwide. The figure has grown since late June, as the BA.4 and BA.5 strains became dominant since they can evade immune protection, whether from vaccination or prior infection.

Some experts say the latter can be as infectious as measles. The number of those in hospitals is the highest since the emergence of the coronavirus, exceeding January’s high of 5,390 during the first wave of Omicron infections. Daily death tolls also rose, topping 100 on Saturday for the first time. More than 1,000 retirement homes have outbreaks, government said, as the elderly are largely affected.