NSW has reported 7017 new COVID-19 cases and 11 deaths as it plans to lift non-urgent elective surgery limits in private hospitals.

Of the deaths, one person was aged in their 40s, one person was in their 60s, four people were in their 70s, three people were in their 80s and two people were in their 90s. 

The man in his 40s had received three doses of a COVID-19 vaccine and had significant underlying health conditions.

Of the people aged 65 and over, six people had received two doses, three people had received three doses and one person was unvaccinated.

There are 1130 patients in hospital with the virus, 59 of them in intensive care.

NSW Health reports 53.5 per cent per cent of people 16 and older have now received a COVID-19 booster shot, while 94.3 per cent have had two vaccine doses.

More non-urgent elective surgery patients will be able to access services requiring an overnight stay in private hospitals from Monday.

NSW Health is lifting the cap to 85 per cent of pre-pandemic capacity in private hospitals before completely removing it on Monday, March 7.

Public hospitals are on track to perform up to 75 per cent of pre-pandemic elective surgeries or higher over the coming weeks, health authorities said.

“[The staged approach] ensures people have access to clinically recommended surgery while we continue to balance the COVID-19 emergency response,” NSW Health acting deputy secretary Wayne Jones said.

Saturday’s hospitalisation figures are less than half of the admissions around the same time last month when the omicron wave saw a peak of 2943 people in hospital with the virus.

However, the slow decline of hospitalisations sits in contrast with NSW Health’s best case scenario of the omicron surge, which had authorities predicting admissions to be well under 500 cases by now.

The latest figures come the day after mask mandates were significantly eased across the state with residents only required to use them in certain settings, including on public transport and in hospitals.

AAP

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