THE number of COVID-19 cases in Western NSW may have stabilised, but the region is not coronavirus free, health authorities say.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
There are currently 45 cases of the virus, a number which has remained relatively stable for more than three weeks, with no new cases detected since April 19.
The low number of people with the virus is, in part, due to the region's distance from major cities, Western NSW Local Health District executive director Aboriginal health and wellbeing Brendon Cutmore said.
He said a number of other factors have helped contain the virus' spread in the district, including: statewide social distancing rules, the response from NSW Police and the experience and effectiveness of the public health unit's contact tracing team.
"While there have been no new notifications in the communities covered by the Western NSW Local Health District for almost 10 days, it is important that everyone continues to practice social distancing and hand hygiene measures," Mr Cutmore said.
We still don't know for sure that there aren't people currently with COVID-19 who haven't been tested.
- Western NSW Local Health District executive director Aboriginal health and wellbeing Brendon Cutmore
"It's great that the number of confirmed cases right across NSW have reduced, and it's because most people have really complied with the recommended measures that we've achieved that."
Despite the good results, Mr Cutmore warned that having just three active cases left does not make the region "coronavirus free".
"We know that the symptoms of COVID-19 for most people will be very mild, and while we've tested thousands of people - more than 200,000 across NSW and more than 4000 in our district - we still don't know for sure that there aren't people currently with COVID-19 who haven't been tested," he said.
"At this point, people need to keep practising social distancing while we increase testing to get a better idea of the risk that remains in our communities."
"It is a dangerous illness, especially to older people or people with pre-existing health conditions."
Mr Cutmore urged people to download the federal government's app, COVIDSafe app, which he said is helping authorities speed up contact tracing of people with COVID-19.
READ MORE: NSW loo roll brawlers granted adjournment
More than two million Australians have now downloaded the app, with health authorities coming forward to explain what information the app collects and how it is used.
People can now be tested if they have any of the symptoms associated with COVID-19, even mild symptoms. Symptoms include fever, sore throat, a cough, trouble breathing.
We have removed our paywall from our stories about the coronavirus. This is a rapidly changing situation and we want to make sure our readers are as informed as possible. If you would like to support our journalists you can subscribe here.