Australia has recorded another five COVID-19 related deaths, while has confirmed a telephone voting system will be in place for those subject to isolation orders of the 21 May federal poll.
NSW recorded three fatalities, while there was one in Victoria and one in the ACT on Monday.
There were a further 13,468 COVID-19 cases in NSW; 9,597 in Victoria, 6,667 in Queensland; 4,993 in Western Australia; 4,281 in South Australia; 1,650 in Tasmania; 775 in the ACT, and 375 fresh coronavirus infections in the Northern Territory.
Some 1,568 people with the virus are hospitalised in NSW, including 62 in ICU; there are 381 patients in Victorian hospitals, including 20 in ICU; 518 in Queensland hospitals, including 14 in ICU; 240 in Western Australia hospitals, including eight in ICU.
Meanwhile, there were 236 in South Australian hospitals, including 13 in ICU; 56 patients are hospitalised in Tasmania, including one in ICU; there are 62 patients with COVID-19 hospitalised in the ACT, including two in ICU; and 31 people with COVID-19 are hospitalised in the in the Northern Territory, including one in ICU.
Telephone voting system for those isolating
Australians will still be able to vote on election day if stuck in COVID-19 isolation as a confirmed case or close contact.
"We are working on a telephone voting option, which will be a first," AEC boss Tom Rogers told ABC Radio on Monday.
Voters who have missed pre-polling and postal vote options will have to make a declaration that they are subject to a health order to access the "emergency" measure.
Mr Rogers said the declaration would stop people "gumming up" the system for others.
"If we have to read out the Senate ballot paper for people in telephone voting, it's going to take some time. So I urge people to only use that if they are actually subject to that health order," he said.
Confirmed COVID-19 cases and most close contacts are currently required to serve seven days in isolation.
National cabinet last month agreed it would remove the requirement for close contacts, contingent on health advice from the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee.
But the expert health body recommended the seven-day isolation rule for close contacts remain until the peak passes for the current Omicron wave, expected sometime in April.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Scott Morrison is preparing to announce a new health minister to replace the outgoing Greg Hunt.
Mr Hunt, who led Australia's COVID-19 pandemic response, is not re-contesting his Victorian seat of Flinders, opening the way for the government to lock in a new candidate for health minister if it's re-elected on 21 May.
Mr Morrison confirmed on Monday that his pick for health minister would be made known this coming weekend.
"I'm taking my team forward at the election. They're a proven team," he said on Sunday when asked about the .
"My strong united team I led for the last three years, sitting around that cabinet table ... has seen Australia lead the world with its recovery [from the pandemic]."
Mr Hunt's departure from politics comes as virus case numbers dropped in every state and territory over the weekend.
In a , Mr Morrison claimed his government had saved 40,000 lives since the pandemic began.
