Covid 19 Australia: NSW records 21,151 new cases, six deaths as Omicron outbreak spikes

A healthcare worker at a drive-thru Covid-19 testing site in Sydney, Australia. Photo / Getty Images

New South Wales reported a record-breaking 21,151 new cases of Covid-19 and six new deaths on Friday as new isolation requirements and close contact definitions come into place.

NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard warned two weeks ago that the state could hit 25,000 cases a day "by the end of January" based on University of NSW modelling, but that figure has almost been recorded a month earlier.

A healthcare worker at a drive-thru Covid-19 testing site in Sydney, Australia. Photo / Getty Images

There are now 763 people in hospital with the virus, 69 of whom are in intensive care.

In NSW, 95 per cent of people aged 16 and over have received a first dose of the vaccine, while 93.5 per cent are fully vaccinated.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Thursday revealed new changes to close contact definitions and testing requirements across each state and territory.

He said each state had agreed on "a very practical way forward" despite being in different situations.

"Omicron requires us to undertake a change of how we are managing the pandemic, and we need to reset how we think about the pandemic, and how we manage ourselves and the things we need to do as governments," he said.

"Omicron is a game changer. It has been in the country for just over a month."

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison speaks during a media conference. Photo / Getty Images

The new definition of testing and isolation came into effect in five jurisdictions at midnight Thursday, which include NSW, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia and in the ACT.

Tasmania will follow on January 1 with the Northern Territory and Western Australia will be making announcements in future.

A close contact is now a household contact of a confirmed case only.

Morrison said a household contact is someone who lives with a case or has spent more than four hours with them in a house, accommodation or care facility setting.

"So, you are only a close contact if you are, effectively, living with someone or have been in an accommodation setting with someone for more than four hours with someone who has actually got Covid."