Elective surgeries banned amid COVID-19 pandemic to resume in Australia

Elective surgeries in Australia could resume within a month, health authorities said, after being banned amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Deputy Chief Medical Officer Nick Coatsworth on Monday flagged a "safe and cautious re-introduction" of elective surgery.

It comes less than a month after the National Cabinet comprised of Prime Minister Scott Morrison, and state and territory leaders banned such treatment.

"Elective surgery is not something we are going to sit on for many weeks," Coatsworth told reporters.

"There are Australians out there who are in pain and have disability, and cannot be in the workforce. They need to take very potent pain medication and they need their elective surgery done."

There had been 6,612 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Australia as of Monday morning, an increase of 26 from Sunday.

Of the confirmed cases, 70 have died and 4,230 have been reported as recovered from COVID-19. More than 424,000 tests have been conducted across Australia, according to the Department of Health.