NSW faces 'disaster' if lockdown ends before COVID-19 outbreak eliminated, expert warns

COVID QR code in shopping centre

UNSW professor Raina MacIntyre, an expert in infectious diseases, said previous infections in a population helped fight against how deadly the impact could be.

"Somewhere like the UK, which is opening up now, they have very high vaccination rate but also have a substantial level of previous infections. So that's a very different situation to Sydney, which has no immunity," she said. READ MORE