The Hunter New England Health district has recorded three new cases of COVID-19 in the 24 hours to 8pm on Friday, as the state reached a new record of 1035 locally-acquired COVID cases overnight.
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Two Sydney women, aged in their 70s and 80s respectively, have died in hospital, NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard announced during Saturday morning's update.
Of the two, a Nepean-Blue Mountains woman in her 70s had received two doses of COVID vaccine and had serious underlying health issues, NSW Health's Dr Jeremy McAnulty said, while the second woman, who died at Westmead Hospital overnight, was unvaccinated.
"I express my sympathies and the sympathies of the entire NSW health system, and our government, to the families of those two ladies," Mr Hazzard said.
778 people with COVID have been admitted to hospital for treatment across the state, 125 people in intensive care and 52 require ventilation, NSW Health's Dr Jeremy McAnulty said.
Friday marked a record day for vaccines delivered through the state's vaccine hubs, Mr Hazzard said, noting 61,778 people came forward to state hubs and a further 94,387 were vaccinated at by their GP or pharmacist. The state delivered 156,165 vaccines in the past 24 hours.
Locally, a pop-up testing clinic will be operating at Windale this weekend at the Purple House, on the corner of South and Lake streets, between the hours of 8am and 4pm.
Mr Hazzard used Saturday's COVID update to denounce vaccine misinformation, circulating particularly on social media, and specifically refuted claims that the vaccine could cause issues with fertility.
"There is no evidence whatsoever that women's' fertility, or for that matter men's fertility, would be in any way affected by having the vaccine," Mr Hazzard said.
Under questioning over reports some GP advice conflicted with Mr Hazzard's comments, he said: "The very best of the very best advice comes from a body referred to as the National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance ... and the advice is as I gave it earlier," urging GPs to catch up on information issued by the national centre.
Mr Hazzard also announced that weddings would be allowed to take place from 12.01am Friday, later this week. Guests will be limited to five people in addition to those required to perform the service, Mr Hazzard said, foreshadowing further details to become available as the week progresses.
Simon McCarthy
Simon McCarthy is a journalist working at the Newcastle Herald in NSW. He writes news and features, and produces video and multimedia, for the Herald and Herald Weekender magazine. He contributes regularly to the Newcastle Herald’s daily Topics column, and is the co-creator and producer of the Toohey’s News podcast. McCarthy has worked as a journalist in regional NSW since 2013. He joined the newsroom of the Newcastle Herald in 2017 from the Northern Daily Leader in Tamworth where he worked from 2015 to 2016.
Simon McCarthy is a journalist working at the Newcastle Herald in NSW. He writes news and features, and produces video and multimedia, for the Herald and Herald Weekender magazine. He contributes regularly to the Newcastle Herald’s daily Topics column, and is the co-creator and producer of the Toohey’s News podcast. McCarthy has worked as a journalist in regional NSW since 2013. He joined the newsroom of the Newcastle Herald in 2017 from the Northern Daily Leader in Tamworth where he worked from 2015 to 2016.
