The first of Western Australia's specialist coronavirus clinics have opened in Perth, with more than 30 people queueing up outside Royal Perth Hospital's Ainslie House before the clinic even opened its doors this morning.

Key points: COVID clinics are open at three major Perth hospitals

COVID clinics are open at three major Perth hospitals Only people who meet certain criteria should present for testing

Only people who meet certain criteria should present for testing The Government may look to extend this to the regions as needed

The State Government last week announced three clinics would open to cater for an expected demand in testing for COVID-19 for those who displayed symptoms and had recently returned from overseas.

So far, there have been six confirmed cases of the virus in WA.

The latest was a man in his 40s, whose mother had recently returned from Indonesia and tested positive.

Meanwhile a woman in her 60s also tested positive for COVID-19 after her husband returned from Iran — which is dealing with one of the largest outbreaks of the disease outside China.

The specialist COVID clinics will be open from 8:00am to 8:00pm at Royal Perth, Sir Charles Gairdner and Fiona Stanley hospitals, with the Government leaving open the possibility of setting up more as the virus takes hold.

A man showing cold and flu symptoms was taken by ambulance to Fiona Stanley Hospital for testing on Tuesday night after trying to board a cruise ship at Fremantle.

The man was trying to board the Sun Princess, which had arrived from Mauritius.

Medical checks are being carried out to ensure prospective passengers do not have coronavirus.

Clinics only for those at higher risk

Health Minister Roger Cook said only patients who met certain criteria should attend the clinics at this stage.

"The COVID clinics are dedicated clinics for those people in the higher-risk categories of having been exposed to the COVID-19 virus," he said.

Doctors wearing full plastic shield face masks speak with people outside a COVID-19 fever clinic in Perth. ( ABC News: Benjamin Gubana )

Mr Cook said people should only present at the clinics if they:

Were experiencing flu-like symptoms

Were experiencing flu-like symptoms Had travelled from overseas or come in contact with someone who has travelled from overseas

Had travelled from overseas or come in contact with someone who has travelled from overseas Had come in contact with someone who was a confirmed case or a suspected case of coronavirus

Mr Cook said the clinics would be expanded to regional centres in the coming weeks.

WA Health Minister Roger Cook said fever clinics in regional areas would open in coming weeks. ( ABC News: James Carmody )

"I stress, we may need to broaden these definitions and we may need to increase the number of these COVID clinics particularly in our regional areas of Western Australia," he said.

"We're looking to open those COVID clinics in our larger population centres across regional Western Australia.

"So we anticipate we'll be opening one in Bunbury in the first instance, but also extending them to Albany, Kalgoorlie, Geraldton, Karratha, South Hedland and Broome.

"But what we'll be doing is rolling these out as we need to."

Mr Cook said the main focus was on Perth's metropolitan area, where all COVID-19 cases in WA had so far been confirmed.

More than 200 tested at clinics

East Metropolitan Health Service chief executive and coordinator of the COVID clinics Liz MacLeod said the majority attending this morning fit the criteria.

"Up until lunchtime today … more than 450 people have presented to the clinics," Ms MacLeod said.

"Of those, over 300 required further assessment and over 200 people have been tested."

Chief executive of east metropolitan health services Liz MacLeod is coordinating the COVID-19 fever clinics. ( ABC News: James Carmody )

Director of Communicable Disease Control Paul Armstrong said there were no new cases in WA in the past 24 hours.

"We've got six cases in total, we have four still in their homes being managed," Dr Armstrong said. "And they're being followed up very closely to make sure they're OK.

"All of those cases are either people who are returned travellers or people who have had contact with people who have brought the illness in from overseas.

"There is no transmission yet within the Western Australian community, but that's not to say that's not going to happen. It will happen at some stage.

"But at the moment the risk is still quite low for the average person, so we're asking the public to acknowledge that and not to take drastic actions that aren't required."

AMA push to start closing schools

The Australian Medical Association's WA president, Andrew Miller, said the State Government needed to consider closing schools to contain the spread of the virus.

"One way of getting ahead of this curve would be to close the schools," he said.

"So if we see the cases increase the same way they did in Italy over the next week for example, then Western Australia should be closing its schools in order to prevent that transmission."

Italy has seen a dramatic escalation in COVID-19 cases. ( Reuters: Manuel Silvestri )

Dr Miller said his main concern was frontline health workers becoming overwhelmed with cases.

"About 16 days ago, Italy had 100 cases," he said. "Today, Australia is in that position.

"In 16 days' time we may not be where they are now, but it's possible.

"And if that's possible, that's a very short space of time in which to get ready to deal with a large number of cases and explain to the population that massive changes are required.

"So we're not trying to cause panic, we just want people to have it in their heads that things could change dramatically in the next few weeks if the virus does the same thing here that it's done in Italy, which in many ways is a comparable country."

WA pandemic plan to be released

Premier Mark McGowan said the Government would release its pandemic plan as early as Wednesday.

"The plan itself goes through different agencies and what might need to be done in certain circumstances," he said.

"The most important thing is we have our pandemic plan, we are prepared for what might come, we have opened the clinics, we're ensuring as best we can people remain calm and informed."

Mr McGowan said the virus presented a serious economic threat to the state.

"I also just want to emphasise, our small businesses are suffering," he said.

"Continue to go out and buy products … do whatever it might be to keep our economy strong.

"Clearly we are in dangerous economic times and we need to keep confidence in the economy."

Calls for Commonwealth to act on telehealth

Mr Cook also backed calls from the GP community for an item to be made available through Medicare for telehealth.

"We have to have a telehealth consult available to GPs in the event that they need to be able to meet a patient remotely," Mr Cook said.

People lined up outside the clinic well before it opened at 8:00am. ( ABC News: Benjamin Gubana )

"And secondly, there may come a time when a GP themselves has to self isolate, so we want to keep them in action making sure they can still see their patients.

"We've written to the Federal Government, and my colleague Greg Hunt the federal Minister for Health, to say look, we really want you to consider extending telehealth consults right across the MBS (Medicare Benefits Schedule).

"We're expecting the Federal Government to announce soon that they'll have an MBS item number for patients who are suspected to have been in contact with the COVID-19 virus."