COVID-19 deaths in Australia are expected to reach 10,000 in the coming week. 

Australia is rapidly approaching the grim milestone, with over three-quarters of these deaths having occurred in just the first half of 2022.

Australia’s total COVID-19 deaths per case, or deaths per capita, place the natio fairly low on the global ranking, together with New Zealand, Taiwan and Japan.

However, Australia is now experiencing a succession of Omicron variants during winter that are holding infection rates high, with over 8 million cases now, nearly half of those since Jan 1st this year.

Australia currently has a daily deaths per capita rate comparable to the UK and Canada, but less than France, even though these countries are in summer and have recorded a decline in cases over recent weeks.

The average daily death rate in Australia sits just below two people per million, but the nation is on track to hit the terrible 10,000 deaths milestone in the next few days.

“As we approach the 10,000 deaths due to COVID-19 here in Australia, we must remember that other countries have surpassed the milestone of millions,” says Dr Cassandra Berry - a Professor of Immunology at Murdoch University.

“Although initially a novel virus we are becoming way too familiar with the name. However, SARS-CoV-2 variants currently circulating can have serious sequelae [other health problems that follow a disease] after infection including death.

“Although most of us in Australia have received three doses of the COVID-19 vaccines and the elderly four doses, we face the ever-present risks of living with this endemic virus in our country.”

She says there are three options other than the virus being fatal; avoiding the virus, contracting the virus with recovery, and contracting the virus with chronic after-effects. “Avoidance is still the ideal,” according to Dr Berry

“However, people may unintentionally infect others in the community due to being asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic.

“On the other hand, we probably all know some who are knowingly sick and have tested positive for COVID-19 but chose to ignore seven days isolation and leave their household to carry out daily activities. 

“We need to remind ourselves that chronic COVID effects include reduced lung capacity, alveoli lesions, vocal fold paralysis, pulmonary fibrosis, walking pneumonia, neuropsychiatric, cardiac/kidney inflammation, coagulation and chronic fatigue.

“It is compassionate and kind to care for others by abiding by the isolation requirements if COVID-19 positive. This consideration will undoubtedly lower the risk of more people dying unnecessarily from this potentially fatal and dangerous virus.”

One of the main reasons why the death rate is high may be due to increased community transmission rates which, in turn, contributed to the deaths.

The public lowering their guard, low childhood vaccination and third-shot booster rates, along with the relaxation of mask and isolation restrictions while still in the peak of the Omicron wave, may be the reason why the virus transmission is high.