COVID NSW and Hunter: Region records more than 3200 new cases after rapid antigen test processing delays

Hunter New England has recorded 3,213 new COVID cases following almost 1,500 positive RATs and 736 positive PCR tests.

But NSW Health officials have warned the positive RAT results "artificially" inflated the cases reported for the 24 hours to 4pm on Tuesday after a data processing data glitch failed to include the RAT results registered from Sunday to Monday.

About 10,000 positive RATs registered with Service NSW by people between Sunday, March 13, and Monday, March 14, had not been included in the daily count until Wednesdays.

There are currently 38 COVID-19 cases receiving care in hospitals across the Hunter New England Local Health District, and three in intensive care.

It comes as another five people with COVID-19 died in NSW - three men and two women.

One person was aged in their 30s, one person was in their 60s, one person was in their 70s and two people were in their 80s.

Of the three people who died over the age of 65, one person had received three doses of a COVID-19 vaccine and two people had received two doses. NSW Health said older age was a significant risk factor for serious illness and death for COVID-19, particularly when combined with significant underlying health conditions.

The person in their 60s who died had not been vaccinated and had significant underlying health conditions.

The person in their 30s who died had received two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine and had significant underlying health conditions.

One person was from south western Sydney, one person was from Western Sydney, one person was from the Central Coast, one person was from the Northern Rivers and one person was from Wollongong.

This brings the total number of COVID-19 related deaths in NSW since the beginning of the pandemic to 1,996.

There are now 1,016 COVID-19 cases admitted to hospital across NSW, including 36 in intensive care - 15 of whom require ventilation.

The total number of cases detected by PCR tests in NSW since the beginning of the pandemic is 999,189.

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