The WA Government has announced expanded criteria for COVID-19 testing to include specific geographic areas, areas where outbreaks have occurred, higher-risk communities and cruise ship passengers.

Key points: More people will be eligible for COVID-19 testing in Western Australia

More people will be eligible for COVID-19 testing in Western Australia The new tests focus on specific risk groups, such as cruise passengers

The new tests focus on specific risk groups, such as cruise passengers The change is designed to protect the most vulnerable members of society

WA Health Minister Roger Cook said until now testing had largely been focused on people arriving from overseas or those who had come into contact with travellers or known cases of coronavirus.

But with the state's borders now effectively closed, he said tests would be made available to different people who are considered most vulnerable.

Western Australia has a total of 175 diagnosed cases of the disease, including one death.

WA COVID-19 snapshot Confirmed cases so far: 662

Confirmed cases so far: 662 Recovered: 650

Recovered: 650 Deaths: 9

Deaths: 9 Total tests: 395,402 Latest information from the WA Health Department





Mr Cook said WA had expanded its testing regime after receiving advice from the Communicable Disease Network Australia. He said relaxing the threshold for testing would allow for the gathering of a larger body of evidence and protection of more vulnerable West Australians.

He said the new regime had three key aims.

"One is that we want to protect the vulnerable," Mr Cook said.

"Two, we want to pick up individual cases and to be able to scan the horizon to see them easily.

"And, three, we want to increase our awareness of any community transmission as that starts to take place."

The testing regime now includes:

Targeting specific geographic areas where there has been community spread

Targeting specific geographic areas where there has been community spread The testing of other settings, for example workplaces, where outbreaks have occurred

The testing of other settings, for example workplaces, where outbreaks have occurred The testing of high-risk communities, for example aged care facilities, remote and rural areas, detention centres, boarding schools and military barracks, where there is at least two cases of respiratory illness

The testing of high-risk communities, for example aged care facilities, remote and rural areas, detention centres, boarding schools and military barracks, where there is at least two cases of respiratory illness The testing of any cruise ship passenger presenting with symptoms who has disembarked within 14 days — even those who have just travelled in domestic waters

Testing has so far been focused on overseas travellers or those who had come into contact with travellers or infected people. ( AAP: Darren England )

"We will obviously maintain our vigilance around travellers, but we also now need to look to other cohorts to make sure that we're tracking the progress of the virus," he said.

"Older Western Australians are a high-risk category and potentially other frontline workers.

Mr Cook said the current virus testing regime at COVID-19 clinics would continue.

Who should present to COVID-19 clinics? People who have EITHER a fever of 38 degrees Celsius OR acute respiratory infection

People who have Symptoms to look out for include fever, shortness of breath, cough or sore throat

Symptoms to look out for include or Patients who are tested should remain isolated at home until they receive their test results. Major clinics have been set up at Perth hospitals including Royal Perth, Sir Charles Gairdner, Fiona Stanley, Joondalup, Armadale, Rockingham and St John of God Midland. They are open from 8:00am–8:00pm daily. In Southern WA a clinic is operating at Bunbury Health Campus from 10:00am–4:00pm daily. In Northern WA a clinic is operating at Broome Hospital from 8:30am–4:00pm daily. Outside these areas, people with symptoms should present to their local hospital. For more information go to the Health Department website.

People who have returned from overseas in the past 14 days and have symptoms, or people who had contact with a confirmed case, are eligible for testing.

The current provision for clinics to test all healthcare workers with a high temperature and flu-like symptoms will also continue.

Kimberley lockdown flagged as police man border

Western Australia's borders will be closed from 1:30pm today, with anyone arriving in the state excluding non-essential services required to self-isolate for 14 days.

Mr Cook said police would be stationed on the border at each main arterial road to screen vehicles.

"We will continue to make sure that we can get important essential goods, such as food and medical supplies, into the state," he said.

"If they are people who do not meet the essential services requirement, they will be issued with a boarding card — similar to what you fill out when you're coming into the country on a flight or a ship – and they will be required to provide their details so that we can track them as they self-isolate for 14 days.

"We can stay in touch with them, we can monitor and we can spot check to make sure that they are following the orders required under the Police Commissioner's directive."

Mr Cook flagged further restrictions would likely be implemented, limiting travel to certain regions within the state.

"It's very likely that you will see some strong action taken with regard to the Kimberley in the coming days," he said.

"You've already seen that with regards to remote communities, we're likely to look at the Kimberley region as an area and basically say we don't want people going to the Kimberley."

The Government says "strong action" is likely to prevent people travelling to the Kimberley. ( ABC News: Erin Parke )

People have been urged to reconsider any upcoming holidays within WA and Mr Cook said even camping was not necessarily a safe option.

"At this stage we want people to reconsider their holidays, we don't want people moving around the state," he said.

"But the message loud and clear is that if you have plans for travel over Easter, please reconsider those plans."

"If people aren't prepared to really cooperate … we will make sure that we put the necessary directives in place to [address] that behaviour."

Cruise ships WA's 'Achilles heel', Rottnest closed

Mr Cook told ABC Radio Perth the rise in the number of WA cases was "bubbling along at the same sort of trajectory at the moment".

"What we are seeing [elsewhere] at the moment, really disturbingly, is a big number of people coming from the Ruby Princess and Ovation of the Seas cruise ships," he said.

"They are our real Achilles heel at the moment in terms of trying to control the number of new cases each day."

A female passenger in her 70s who had been on the Ruby Princess cruise ship and disembarked in Sydney has been revealed today as Australia's eighth coronavirus death.

Mr Cook said police were guarding the state's border at Fremantle Port today as the Magnifica cruise ship refuelled after sparking alarm and confusion yesterday.

The Magnifica cruise ship is refuelling in Fremantle but passengers are set to stay onboard. ( ABC News: Fiona Blackwood )

He confirmed Rottnest Island had been closed so the State Government could use it as a quarantine zone if necessary to accommodate people who could not self-isolate safely.

"That is, they don't have the capacity to be able to stay at home by themselves or they've got people in their homes who are vulnerable," he said.

"If you've got a partner, for instance, that's at home and is undergoing chemotherapy, we don't want you self-isolating with that person.

"We will be making sure that we can use these facilities like Rottnest, potentially hotels around the city [as well], as a place where people can go so we can guarantee that they can self-isolate safely."

It also emerged a Perth bus driver had been infected, but there were few details available.

Mr Cook was unable to provide details of the days or routes the Transperth driver had worked before being diagnosed with the virus.

Mr Cook said the case was being investigated but the risk to passengers who may have come in contact with the driver was "low".

Perth Zoo shuts as 'precautionary measure'

Perth Zoo said it was temporarily closing its doors to visitors for the first time in its 122-year history in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Perth Zoo chairperson Grant Robinson said the decision was not made lightly.

"Although the COVID-19 risk is low in an open-air environment like a zoological park, it is important for Perth Zoo to be a leader in our community and prioritise the health and wellbeing of our staff and visitors," he said.

"This is a precautionary measure, but the safety of everyone who uses our zoo is our priority.

Perth Zoo says staff will remain onsite to care for its 1,300 animals. ( ABC News: Kearyn Cox )

"Throughout the period of closure, our staff will remain onsite caring for the 1,300 animals who call Perth Zoo home and looking after our beautiful botanic estate.

"We also recognise that the zoo is not just a place for people to come and look at animals. It is part of the fabric of the WA community.

"While the zoo is closed, the public is encouraged to stay virtually connected to our animals through our social media channels and website."

Drill rig workers flown to Broome after positive test

A contractor working on a Browse Basin drilling rig off the Kimberley coast has tested positive for coronavirus, resulting in all non-essential staff being flown to the WA mainland to self-isolate for two weeks.

The ABC understands most of the workers are in lockdown in a resort in Broome.

The man who tested positive had already returned to his home overseas by the time he fell ill.

He had been working on the Inpex-commissioned Maersk Deliverer drilling rig, about 220 kilometres off the Kimberley coast.

None of his co-workers have shown any symptoms of the disease, but operator Inpex said non-essential personnel were now being transferred onshore to commence self-isolation.

"At this point, no persons on board Maersk Deliverer have shown symptoms of COVID-19," Inpex said in a statement.

"As a precautionary measure, all non-essential personnel on the drilling rig are being transferred onshore to commence self-isolation.

"Our priority is the health and wellbeing of the people who work with us and the safe operation of our facilities.

"We value the Broome community and take this matter very seriously and continue to monitor the situation closely."

Mr Cook also said he understood there were some cases in northern WA related to the resources industry that would be confirmed later today.

Bring forward hardship payments: Opposition

The State Opposition has called on the McGowan Government to bring its stimulus package forward to help struggling businesses and workers.

The Government last week outlined a $607 million suite of measures to support households and small businesses in the state of emergency.

Liberal leader Liza Harvey said the stimulus package should be expanded and brought forward from July 1.

"We've seen the panicked faces of all those people in the Centrelink queues who've lost their jobs, small businesses are on their knees," she said.

"I think we need hardship payments to our residents. I think we need hardship payments to our businesses who desperately want to keep their staff employed. The stimulus … needs to come forward now.

"Waiting until the 1st of July isn't acceptable to the community."