Victoria has reported another 20 COVID-19 deaths, as hospitalisations continue to fall.
There are 889 COVID-19 patients in Victorian hospitals, down from 953 on Saturday.
Of those in hospital, 69 active cases are in intensive care and 35 are on ventilators with a further 42 cleared cases in ICU.
The state has reported 10,589 new COVID-19 infections, comprised of 4,479 PCR tests and 6,110 rapid antigen tests.
The number of active COVID-19 cases in Victoria has continued to drop with 78,294 active cases recorded in the community overnight, compared to 191,058 a week ago.
Premier Daniel Andrews said the drop in cases in the community presented "a more optimistic picture" than government modelling had initially predicted.
"It's certainly the view of many experts that we're past the peak, the data suggests that," Mr Andrews said.
Active cases peaked earlier in the month, with 253,000 reported on January 19.
Authorities say the demand on PCR testing that overwhelmed the network earlier this month has now eased and most tests are being returned within 24 hours, but Mr Andrews conceded that there was almost certainly more cases in the community than the records show.
Authorities say the demand on PCR testing that overwhelmed the network earlier this month has now eased and most tests are being returned within 24 hours.
Around 38.1 per cent of Victorian adults have now received at least three doses of a COVID-19 vaccine.
On Saturday, health authorities confirmed there were a small number of cases of the recently discovered Omicron BA.2 subvariant present in Victoria, as they again urged those eligible for vaccinations to book an appointment as soon as possible.
Mr Andrews said both the state and federal governments were monitoring the development of the subvariant, but that no further developments had occurred.
"I don’t have any advice to be particularly concerned about that, but that may change," he said.
Infections detected at more than 100 Victorian aged care facilities
Mr Andrews confirmed reports of COVID outbreaks at aged care facilities across Victoria.
He said active cases had been detected in five state-run facilities and in more than 110 privately-run facilities.
Mr Andrews said that while it was primarily an issue for the federal government to address, he was willing to work with the Commonwealth on controlling the outbreaks.
"We're there to help, we're there to assist, running away from responsibility … no one benefits from those sorts of arguments," he said.
Mr Andrews thanked the staff at Victorian aged care facilities, and said the staff-to-resident ratios made "all the difference" in navigating COVID outbreaks.
Opposition urges end to check-ins, work from home and density limits
The state opposition is calling for several COVID-19 restrictions to be eased immediately, in light of the rising vaccination rate.
The Coalition said QR code check-ins should be scrapped for "low-risk settings where contact tracing is not occurring" and said it was opposed to booster vaccinations being mandated for the general Victorian community.
Both the Victorian and New South Wales governments have advocated for the definition of "fully vaccinated" to be updated to include a booster dose, but national cabinet did not agree to the change at its latest meeting.
The opposition also called for the work-from-home recommendation currently in place to be scrapped, along with density limits for all hospitality and entertainment venues.
"Victorians need a new approach that treats them with respect and backs them – not berates them – to make the right choices," Opposition Leader Matthew Guy said.
But Mr Andrews said while the QR code check-in system was "not forever", it would stay in place for the foreseeable future.
He said they were not just to help people track their movements if they became infected, but to ensure the integrity of the "fully vaccinated economy" in Victoria.
"It really is a tool to make sure that only those who are double-dosed, and I think at some point, triple-dosed, are out and about," he said.
Andrews and Guy clash over further mandates
Mr Andrews, who along with the New South Wales government has advocated for the definition of "fully vaccinated" to be expanded to include a third booster dose, said it was critically important people secured their third dose as soon as possible.
More than 2.1 million Victorians are still eligible to receive their third dose of the COVID vaccine.
Mr Andrews said he was very confident that ATAGI would release advice mandating booster doses of the vaccine.
Mr Guy said the mandating of a third booster dose undermined the public health message, and could lead to a slippery slope of constant mandates.
"I just think the concept of mandating a third shot … will we be mandating a fourth shot? A fifth shot? A sixth shot?" Mr Guy said.
"I think the concept of mandating is just 2020, 2021 policy. It's not the way of the future."
Mr Andrews rejected Mr Guy's assertions, and said he would adhere to the medical advice that was provided to him.
"You know what’s mandatory? Following the advice of experts. So I really don’t have anything else to say about what he said today, I’ll follow the advice of experts," Mr Andrews said.
Movement in Melbourne has continued to rise, according to the University of Melbourne's mobility index, which recorded a sharp dip to near-lockdown lows earlier this month before a steady recovery over the past couple of weeks.
Apple data on the volume of directions requests has also recorded a rise in mobility to near-baseline levels, although public transport use is still lagging behind.
