ELECTIVE surgeries have been halted in most public and private hospitals across Victoria from 11.59pm, Thursday January 6, in response to the increasing surge of COVID-19 positive case numbers and the pressure on the health system, likely to also impact the Western District Health Service (WDHS).

This will impact people who are classified as semi-urgent in Category 2, requiring surgery within 90 days and non-urgent cases, classified in Category 3, requiring treatment within 12 months.