The death of two unvaccinated men due to COVID-19 in the Western NSW Local Health District (WNSWLHD) has led to health officials reiterating the virus does not discriminate with age.

Both Dubbo men - one in his 40s and one in his 70s - were being cared for at Dubbo Base Hospital and had underlying health conditions.

The man in his 40s was a member of the local Aboriginal community. The death of the man in his 70s, who was in palliative care, will be included in tomorrow's official numbers.

WNSWLHD Chief Executive Scott McLachlan expressed his sincere condolences to the family and friends of both men and said it showed how deadly the delta strain was to those who are unvaccinated.

"I know this is an extremely tough and trying time for those who are struggling to visit loved ones who are in hospital," Mr McLachlan said.

"This is a stark reminder of how crucial (getting vaccinated) is to protect people's lives. Vaccination helps to prevent people who contract COVID from getting really crook."

14 COVID patients are currently in hospital across the region, with four of these in intensive care and three on ventilation.

There are currently 226 cases in the WNSWLHD's COVID Care in the Community program, with an additional eight patients discharged in the past 24 hours.

Case numbers drop slightly

Up to 8pm last night, the WNSWLHD recorded 21 new cases of COVID-19. Only five of these were from the Western Plains with one in Bourke and four in Narromine.

The new Narromine cases have been confirmed to be household contacts. As a result, there have been no changes to the region's stay-at-home orders at this time.

Mr McLachlan expressed his hope the single case in Bourke signalled a slowing of the spread of the virus in the region, though reminded residents there had still been positive cases in the community only a few days before.

Other cases were spread out quite evenly, with only one new case recorded in Bathurst, Dubbo, Oberon, Cowra and Orange.

However, authorities remain concerned about the growing cluster in Wellington, with an additional 11 cases recorded in the past 24 hours.

New venues of concern continue to be updated as investigations from WNSWLHD teams continue. The full list of venues of concern across the region can be found on the NSW Health website.

Testing jumps

Mr McLachlan was pleased to report a jump of the region's testing numbers, with about 3500 recorded in the past 24 hours.

He said the majority of these came from Cowra, Oberon and Canowindra and thanked these populations for doing their best to stay ahead of any potential infection in those areas, which he said was crucial right across the region.

"Right across the region, testing remains incredibly crucial for us to stay ahead," he said.

An updated list of pop-up testing locations across the WNSWLHD, all of which now offer surveillance testing, can be found here.

Vaccination rates continue to climb

The announcement of the district's tenth and eleventh deaths comes as the WNSWLHD continues to see vaccination rates rising across the board, with 88.7 per cent of the total population with their first dose and around 60 per cent with their second.

"Recently, we've seen changes to restrictions in the coming weeks when we hit those 70 and 80 per cent vaccination targets and it's been pleasing to see recent improvements in western NSW man we're heading towards those numbers," Mr McLachlan said.

As of this week, multiple LGAs across the Western Plains have recorded high rates of second doses. Some, including Gilgandra and Warren, have more than 95 per cent of their populations with their first

The most recent vaccination rates for other LGAs, including Coonamble which has been notably higher than others in recent weeks, are still being gathered by the WNSWLHD, with an update expected to be released later this afternoon.

On the other end of the spectrum, the Cobar community, which has a lower vaccination rate compared to the surrounding LGAs, remains a vaccination priority for the WNSWLHD.

Mr McLachlan urged all Cobar residents yet to receive their first dose to take advantage of the first dose clinic currently set up at the local youth centre until Wednesday 29 September 10am-3pm. An ADF second dose clinic is also currently in the area.

The updated schedule of these WNSWLHD pop-up vaccination clinics, which include dates, times and locations, can be found here.

The AstraZeneca and Pfizer vaccines are also available at local GPs, Aboriginal Health Services and respiratory clinics.

The Cobar pharmacy, amongst several others across the WNSWLHD, will also be distributing the Moderna vaccine in the coming days for people aged between 12 and 59 who are yet to have their first dose.

For all the latest information about COVID-19 across NSW, including several handy links, be sure to check out our in-app COVID-19 button.