EVERYONE in the Bathurst community, regardless of where they've been or if them have symptoms, should be coming forward for a COVID-19 test.
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That is the advice from deputy premier John Barilaro as Bathurst continues to record cases of the virus, with at least seven confirmed as of Tuesday afternoon.
He stressed the importance of having higher testing numbers as cases emerge in communities that were previously unaffected.
"In most cases, even in a place like Wilcannia, don't wait for symptoms, just get tested. We want to get testing numbers up so we can get ahead of the curve," Mr Barilaro said.
"I've always argued you should just get tested, especially if you've had an exposure in your community and you've got a case in your community.
"We are happy to keep testing people. It doesn't have to be based on symptoms. You could be asymptomatic for days before you notice a case. The message should be: get tested."
After the announcement of eight venues of concern in the Bathurst area, many of which are in Kelso, a new testing site was opened at the Kelso Community Hub.
It will remain open until Friday and the drive-in testing clinic continues to be available at Mount Panorama.
With Bathurst waiting to see the breadth of COVID-19 in the community, there are question marks over whether or not the lockdown in regional NSW will lift this weekend as planned.
Mr Barilaro could not provide any clarity on that on Tuesday, a day after flagging a possible extension to lockdowns of 14 to 28 days.
He said conversations about regional lockdowns would be held during Wednesday's crisis cabinet meeting.
"I'm still 24 hours away from even having a clue what's happening on Saturday and I'll know a lot more tomorrow (Wednesday) and then we'll make it public on Thursday," he said.
Lifting of lockdown is looking more and more likely to be done on an local government area (LGA) basis, with higher-risk LGAs expected to remain under the strict stay-at-home orders while others go back to pre-lockdown restrictions.
"I'm comfortable with the LGA approach of lifting LGAs out of restriction," Mr Barilaro said.
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