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NSW is back at a near-record number of new COVID-19 cases as the state reached a milestone of seven million vaccine jabs.
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NSW recorded 1288 new cases and seven deaths in the 24-hour period to 8pm Wednesday, just below the record of 1290 cases recorded on August 30.
Murrumbidgee Local Health District has continued to record zero new cases.
"Yesterday, 121,000 people in NSW came forward to get vaccinated and we passed, as we predicted, the seven million jab mark, which is outstanding," NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said on Thursday morning.
"In the 24 hours to 8:00pm last night, there were 1,288 cases of community transmission. Unfortunately, there were seven deaths and we extend our deepest condolences to the family and loved ones of those people who lost their lives.
"But it's really important to know that I've been commenting in the last few days that we anticipate October will be the worst month for the number of people that lose their lives and also for the rate of people in hospital."
The 24-hour period to 8pm on Tuesday saw 1116 new cases across NSW and a second positive result for coronavirus fragments in Temora's sewage.
Four venues across the region have been listed as casual contact sites after an essential worker travelled through West Wyalong, Hay and Tooleybuc between Thursday and Sunday.
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NSW Deputy Premier urged people in the state's Far West and Central West to get tested as new cases emerged in Broken Hill, Wilcannia, Dubbo and Orange.
"There's been two new cases notified this morning for Queanbeyan but luckily no exposure sites. They're linked to the Canberra outbreak," he said.
Of the 1,288 locally acquired cases reported to 8pm last night, 445 are from Western Sydney Local Health District (LHD), 387 are from South Western Sydney LHD, 149 are from Sydney LHD, 101 are from South Eastern Sydney LHD, 82 are from Nepean Blue Mountains LHD, 31 are from Northern Sydney LHD, 23 are from Western NSW LHD, 22 are from Illawarra Shoalhaven LHD, seven are from Central Coast LHD, five are from Far West LHD, four are from Hunter New England LHD, 11 are in a correctional centre and 21 cases are yet to be assigned to an LHD.
NSW Health's ongoing sewage surveillance program has recently detected fragments of the virus that causes COVID-19 at sewage treatment plants across NSW. Fragments were detected in Bega and Cooma in Southern NSW LHD and Bomaderry in Illawarra Shoalhaven LHD.
In response to questions about people overdosing on livestock medicine Ivermectin in an attempt to cure or prevent COVID-19, NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant urged people to follow qualified medical advice.
"Make sure that you've got your health care provided by a health care practitioner and that you seek advice before taking any medications. It is important to seek the best health advice," Dr Chant said.
"Our doctors in Australia are across the literature in terms of what drugs and therapies are useful in COVID. Please listen to them."
NSW Health has been notified of the deaths of seven people who had COVID-19, all people aged in the 50, 70s or 80s, in hospitals in Sydney.
Ms Berejiklian was asked about QLD Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk's comments that the Doherty report modelling used to justify reducing restrictions at 70 per cent fully vaccinated.
Ms Palaszczuk claimed that the modelling predicted Australia would see 80 deaths per day from COVID-19 during a period six months after restrictions were lifted.
"The sad reality is outside of a pandemic, we lose between 600 and 800 people every year to the flu. We have to put things into perspective," Ms Berejiklian responded.
"Nobody likes to talk about this because it is confronting. But we have to get back to living life as normal as possible, knowing that COVID is among us."
Ms Berejiklian said NSW was going to see deaths despite higher rates of vaccination and lower rates of hospitalisation.
"It is a tragedy, I was providing a supportive message to the heart disease foundation every day and 50 people every day lose their lives to heart disease. Death is horrible," she said.
"But we also need to put things into perspective, because at the moment there are 8 million citizens who do not have a choice in how they spend their free time, who do not have a choice about what they can do when they leave their homes. That is no way to live."
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