Coronavirus testing rates across Sydney and NSW suburbs revealed
A string of Sydney suburbs with lower COVID-19 testing rates than the rest of NSW have sparked concern as new data reveals just how many people in your area are getting swabbed for the virus. CHECK TESTING RATES NEAR YOU.
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As NSW approaches a milestone three million COVID-19 tests and health authorities urge people to come forward amid concerns of a new outbreak, surprising new data shows the suburbs where residents are getting tested - and not every declared hotspot tops the list.
A string of suburbs in the Blacktown, Sydney and Canterbury-Bankstown local government areas (LGAs) are among the top ten for testing in the state while areas like the Blue Mountains and Campbelltown have dragged behind despite having high infection rates.
The statewide data from NSW Health raises concerns that residents in Campbelltown, Liverpool and Parramatta are not following health advice because they have lower rates of testing than other Sydney suburbs – despite being declared hot spots.
The data comes as NSW ends its 12-day streak without an infection with three cases of the disease recorded by NSW Health - including two in southwestern western Sydney - prompting an “urgent” investigation and new venue alerts.
Just days earlier, NSW Health alerted the public that the virus had been detected in the state’s sewerage system.
Health authorities in September launched calls for increased testing in these areas after infected people visited venues including the Moorebank Sports Club at Hammondville, Oatlands Gold Club and Campbelltown Golf Club. Campbelltown also had two confirmed infections at this time.
In the past few weeks, authorities have also raised concerns about a drop in testing rates, with Premier Gladys Berejiklian saying it was a concern given the “risks” of undetected transmission.
In total, 325,830 people have been tested for the virus in NSW in the four weeks to October 6.
The suburbs of Blacktown stretching from Acacia Gardens to Schofields led the state with the largest number of tests (15,000) in September and zero infections.
The City of Sydney spanning suburbs like Alexandria, Darlinghurst, Erskineville and Haymarket had the second-highest testing rates (13,500), followed closely by Canterbury-Bankstown, (12,850). Both areas had confirmed cases of the disease in September.
The Central Coast, Northern Beaches and Inner West also led the state with testing numbers – coming in as the fourth and fifth highest in NSW (10,000), but all reporting zero cases.
These areas were subject to health alerts at that time after being visited by people infected with the disease. Rouse Hill Town Centre, Clovelly Hotel, Stanhope Village, Fitness First Maroubra and the Paperboy cafe were all red flagged by authorities in September, prompting more people to come forward for testing.
Sutherland, Parramatta, The Hills Shire and Cumberland all joined the top ten areas for testing (9,000). Despite being a designated area for increased testing, Parramatta came in ninth in the state for testing rates.
Worryingly, the Blue Mountains region spanning Blackheath and Springwood had among the lowest testing rates in Sydney with 5,000 despite having the largest number of cases in the past four weeks. The region had a sixth of the state’s infections – mostly connected to the Blue Mountains Grammar School cluster.
The southwestern Sydney suburbs of Penrith had just 8,850 tests despite being subject to numerous public health alerts because of an infection in the area. This included an alert for the JB HIFI in Penrith and Anytime Fitness Casula.
Less populous regional NSW localities all had the top ten lowest testing rates in NSW, with Murrumbidgee, Bogan, the Central Darling, Bourke and Brewarrina home to the lowest levels of COVID-19 testing.
NSW Health is continuing to appeal to the community to come forward for testing if you have even mild symptoms like a runny nose, scratchy throat, cough, fever or any other symptoms that could be COVID-19.
Suburbs with the highest testing rates*
Rank LGA Number of tests Cases
1. Blacktown - 15,101- 0
2. Sydney - 13,511 - 1
3. Canterbury-Bankstown - 12,857 - 2
4. Central Coast - 10,718- 0
5. Northern Beaches - 10,456- 0
6. Inner West - 10,440- 0
7. Sutherland Shire - 9,850- 0
8. Parramatta - 9,572 - 0
9. The Hills Shire - 9,554 - 0
10. Cumberland - 9,152 - 1
Testing rates in suburbs with confirmed cases
11. Penrith - 8,848 - 1
12. Liverpool - 8,799 - 1
13. Randwick - 8,715 - 2
14. Campbelltown - 7,693 - 2
24. Fairfield - 15,163 - 1
25. Georges River - 25,127 - 2
26. Canada Bay - 24,919 - 2
27. Blue Mountains 44,757 - 4
28. Waverley 24,425 - 2
50 Hunters Hill - 1,331 - 1
51. Burwood - 1,281 - 1
Suburbs with the lowest testing rates
118. Gilgandra - 72 - 0
119. Walcha - 64 - 0
120. Lockhart 64 - 0
121. Murrumbidgee - 63- 0
122. Bogan - 53 - 0
123. Balranald - 50 - 0
124. Hay - 47 - 0
125. Central Darling - 41- 0
126. Bourke - 39 - 0
127. Carrathool - 37 - 0
128. Brewarrina - 23 - 0
* in the four weeks to October 6- 0