The number of new COVID-19 infections in NSW has exploded to 5715 – almost equalling the total recorded across the entire country the day before.
The cases were diagnosed from more than 160,000 tests in the 24 hours to 8pm on Wednesday and represent an increase of 1952 from Tuesday.
The figure is just shy of the 5725 cases reported across Australia on Wednesday.
An unvaccinated man in his 40s from western Sydney with underlying health conditions died with the virus.
The number of people in hospital has climbed to 347, up 45, with 45 in ICU, 13 of whom are on ventilators.
NSW Health is struggling to keep up with the outbreak, with new data showing a significant slowdown in testing turn-around times and case interviews.
Only 52 per cent of cases were notified to NSW Health by laboratories within one day of sample collection in the week ending December 19, down from 85 per cent the previous week.
While 94 per cent of cases were fully interviewed by Health within one day of notification the previous week, now only 54 per cent are.
The surge in cases has also seen the number of healthcare workers in isolation nearly triple – from 459 to 1364 – in a single week.
The dramatic spike in cases just two days before Christmas increases the pressure on the NSW government to reintroduce some restrictions.
Customer Services Minister Victor Dominello has already announced the government had changed its mind on mandatory check-ins to venues across the state.
“Given the increasing Omicron numbers we’ll revert back to our pre-15 Dec check-in settings,” he tweeted on Thursday.
Check-ins will be mandatory again at supermarkets, shops and hospitality venues.
But Premier Dominic Perrottet is still resisting bringing back mask mandates at indoor venues, despite NSW Health urging everyone to wear them in high-risk settings.
Opposition Leader Chris Minns wants mask mandates reinstated, calling it a “common sense initiative”.
“Now is not the time to be stubborn,” he said on Thursday.
The government’s crisis cabinet is meeting on Thursday to reportedly consider mailing free rapid antigen tests to residents, as testing clinics are overwhelmed and wait times – for tests and results – blow out.
The need to relieve pressure on COVID-19 testing sites across the state is becoming more urgent after days of long queues at the facilities.
Amid reports the government is considering making the unvaccinated pay for their own COVID-19 treatment, Mr Minns said he could not comment on a hypothetical policy.
“Obviously we’re open to policy proposals that protect the community, (and) free up health care spaces in our public hospital system,” he said.
Sydney remains the state’s epicentre of the virus, but transmission is also raging in the Hunter New England area, which has 976 new cases.
The South Eastern Sydney Local Health District has the most cases, with 1186 recorded in the last 24-hour period.
The district has just under one million residents, taking in suburbs like Darlinghurst, Watsons Bay, Maroubra, Woollahra, Waverley, Randwick, Bayside, Kogarah, Hurstville and the Sutherland Shire.
By Tiffanie Turnbull in Sydney
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