02:57The Delta virus continues to spread in western NSW's vulnerable Aboriginal communities of Dubbo, Walgett. There, local Aboriginal health services are trying to improve vaccinations and testing.According to the LHD of western NSW, there were 17 new cases in Dubbo and one in Walgett between 9am and 9am today.There are now 42 cases in the region, with the majority being from Aboriginal people. These were previously considered a priority group for vaccines for the past 18 months.Scott MacFarlane, chief executive of LHD Western, stated that the vast majority of these cases were Aboriginal people. Some are children.Today's press conference saw Gladys Berejiklian, the NSW Premier, announce 26 new cases. However, the Western LHD informed Guardian Australia that they are working hard to confirm the additional numbers. This suggests some of those cases might have been confirmed after the 9am deadline.The region's indigenous vaccination rates are low, which has fueled anger among communities about the slow rollout.This was a problem that the government faced for a good part of the year. Linda Burney, shadow minister for Indigenous Australians said that the current vaccination rate for Aboriginal Australians was 98 percent.
