Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern made her first visit to Auckland today after three months into lockdown. Video / NZ Herald
There are 147 new community cases today and a man isolating at home with Covid in Auckland has died suddenly, the Ministry of Health says.
There are 81 people in hospital with the virus, up from 79 yesterday. There are 11 cases in intensive care or high dependency units, up from nine yesterday. The average age of these people is 53, up from 51 from yesterday.
Of today's cases, 131 are in Auckland, 14 in Waikato and two are in Northland.
Director general of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield said a man in his 60s isolating at home with Covid died suddenly in the West Auckland suburb of Glen Eden.
The coroner will determine the cause of death, including whether it may have been Covid-19 related.
Bloomfield said 1671 people with Covid-19 were isolating at home and it was working well overall. He said officials constantly reviewed how the system worked. Pulsometers were being used in some cases, since people's health could deteriorate quickly.
Covid in Wellington wastewater
Officials have also advised Wellington City Council that Covid-19 has been detected in wastewater at Moa Point, Mayor Andy Foster said.
Foster said officials told the council it wasn't an unusual detection and is likely from cases in MIQ.
On Moa Point positive wastewater testing, Bloomfield said it was congruent with cases in MIQ in Wellington.
There were positive wastewater detections in samples collected from Stratford in Taranaki on November 6 and 7, but Covid-19 was not detected in samples taken on November 8. Further samples will be collected next week.
Further testing in Gisborne and Napier, where positive wastewater detections had been found recently, had not register more positive detections.
Vaccine boosters and a new jab option
On vaccines, Bloomfield said Pfizer had been the focus so far and it would continue to be the primary vaccine. However, he said there was a small number of people who could not have Pfizer for medical reasons - a few hundred people.
A different option would be brought in for those and would offer Astra Zeneca as a second option for people aged 18 and over.
More details would come next week, but the first delivery was likely to be late November.
It would also be offered to those who were required to be vaccinated under a vaccine mandate, but who refused to take the mRNA Pfizer vaccine.
Bloomfield said Pfizer had proved to be a good and effective choice.
Astra Zeneca would only be offered to those who could not take Pfizer for medical reasons, or those who were in workplaces with vaccine mandates but who were refusing to take Pfizer.
Hipkins said the Astra Zeneca vaccine would not be available at as many locations as the Pfizer jab has been.
A total of 22,178 vaccines were administered yesterday, including 5874 first doses and 16,304-second doses. Of those, 5771 were given to Aucklanders, with 1490 first doses and 4281-second doses.
Eighty-nine per cent of Kiwis were partially vaccinated and 79 per cent were fully vaccinated. For Māori, 75 per cent had one dose and 58 per cent were fully vaccinated.
Bloomfield has also had advice from the Covid-19 technical advisory group on the timing and rollout of boosters and he expected to tender his recommendation to the Government by Thursday. It was likely that programme would start in November.
Schools return
Education Minister Chris Hipkins said New Zealand was nearing the stage when it could re-open but that would be done carefully. He said school students in Years 9 and 10 could return to school from November 17. Years 1-8 would return part-time from the same date.
Schools and kura could decide what worked best for their communities in structuring the return to school.
He said public health advice supported the return of schools, but there would be masks for Years 4 and up, and ventilation requirements.
Hipkins said Auckland was at 90 per cent vaccination rates for the first dose and that afforded some protection, as would the mandate on school staff getting vaccinated, which kicked in next week.
Hipkins said the requirements on schools relating to the changes in the curriculum would be eased by delaying the new curriculum introductions.
Asked why primary school students would be part-time, Hipkins said that was based on public health advice. There were no hard and fast rules on how schools should do that, and he was aware some parents were nervous about sending children back to school.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern visiting the Pacific youth lead vaccination event at Fale o Samoa on Bader Drive Mangere. Photo / Dean Purcell
"I've spent several months at home with my own children during Covid-19 restrictions and it is hard going, and that is only a fraction of what Auckland parents have had to deal with".
He said the ability of secondary school students to get vaccinated made it less high risk than for primary schools.
Hipkins said schools should manage it in a way that was safe. Schools would be sent comprehensive guidance - but some schools had a lot more space than others, so it would not be the same for every school.
Asked if a school could choose to bring students back full-time, Hipkins said that was an option if they could do so within public health guidance.
On warnings of a super-spreader event in a school, Hipkins said guidance was that schools were safe with public health measures.
Director general of health Dr Ashley Bloomfield. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Bloomfield said in New South Wales, spread was not being seen in primary schools, even though pupils there were not vaccinated.
Hipkins said a small handful of schools reported having troubles with the mandate for staff to be vaccinated and were working with the Ministry of Health.
He noted concerns once surfaced among port workers when mandates for those employees arrived, and misinformation campaigns had targeted those workers,
The same thing was now happening with schools, but he said information campaigns in ports had proved effective.
Hipkins said the decision to re-open schools followed consultation with those in the sector, including at kura kaupapa, and he acknowledged there was some nervousness.
"We need to rebuild that trust and confidence among the parent community."
Hipkins said many schools only had windows or doors for ventilation, and that was quite effective when all doors and windows were open, so summer was a safer time to move.
Asked what would happen to teachers who did not meet the deadline for the vaccination mandate, Hipkins said exemptions could be used if there was a valid reason.
Asked if teachers who said they wanted to wait until the Astra Zeneca vaccines arrived would still be allowed to work, he said those staff would need to talk to health professionals about it.
He said it was not good enough for him, but simultaneously, schools did not want to lose good staff because of the mandate. His main concern was misinformation about the mRNA vaccines.
On masks for younger children in schools, Bloomfield said advice changed as more evidence emerged. He said there was now much wider acceptability of masks, which would provide an extra layer of protection.
Latest modelling
Bloomfield said Covid modelling initially forecast 200 daily cases by the end of this week - and last week's case numbers were on track with that modelling.
He said hospitalisations had been higher and were due to hit 150 but there was capacity in Auckland for it.
"Anyone who needs care for any reason, do not delay in seeking it. It is safe."
Bloomfield said testing levels remained high, especially in Auckland. He said there were six suburbs of concern: Ranui, Sunnyvale, Kelston, Birkdale, Mangere and Manurewa.
At Edmonton Meadows Care Home in Henderson, 21 residents and four staff members have now tested positive for Covid-19.
Seven of the Covid-19 positive residents are receiving appropriate ward-level care at Auckland hospitals.
A second resident at the Rosaria Rest Home in Avondale has also tested positive.
Bloomfield said the Northland cases were both in the same household in Dargaville - one was a child younger than one. "Vaccination is the best way to protect our tamariki."
People in Dargaville were urged to get tested as soon as possible if they had Covid-19 symptoms.
For the Waikato's 14 cases today, 10 are from Ōtorohanga – including six people in one household who are known contacts of cases.
Three are from Hamilton and one from Ngāruawāhia. There are seven pop-up and dedicated testing sites operating across Waikato today in Hamilton, Ngāruawāhia, Huntly, Ōtorohanga, Te Awamutu, and Te Kuiti.
All 81 people with Covid-19 in hospital are in Auckland. Almost half (40), were unvaccinated, 25 were partially vaccinated, 10 were fully vaccinated and six were unknown.
The seven day rolling average of community cases as at today is 156, up from 148 yesterday. Eighty-four of today's cases are linked to the outbreak. 63 are yet to be linked.
Thirty-four of 119 cases reported yesterday had been infectious in the community. The remaining 85 were in isolation.
Public health officials were managing 4570 contacts. Of those, 75 per cent had received a call from a contact tracer to confirm testing and isolation requirements. Seventy-one per cent had returned at least one test result.
Vaccine certificates
Hipkins, who is also Covid-19 Response Minister, said a vaccines certificate system was under trial, and more information and details on the introduction of it would come next week.
As the Delta outbreak total case numbers approached 4000, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern made her first visit to Auckland after three months of lockdown.
Ardern told reporters limitations at Parliament meant she hadn't been able to visit sooner.
"Tāmaki Makaurau is my home."
It was a chance to talk to Aucklanders about their experience through lockdown, she said.
She said she would make sure they would consult with business representatives across the board, those who were operating and those who were shut during lockdown.
Ardern confirmed it wouldn't be her last visit to Auckland during lockdown.
Throughout, she had remained in contact with business leaders as well as family and friends to see what lockdown had been like. However, she had to balance competing demands on the economy and health.
Asked how her location has impacted decision-making, Ardern said Cabinet members based in Auckland were part of those decisions right through. She again mentioned she felt they had struck the right balance.
"I will be back."
Ardern defended the informal meetings she'd had with business owners, saying she would return for more consultation.
"In one day, I just can't visit everywhere but I will be back."
Cabinet had set down milestones for vaccination mandates for different workforces including the police and they would be considered.
Asked why she didn't visit smaller businesses, Ardern said she wasn't concerned about protesters and she said it was important to meet with various business representatives.
On the suggestion she was a stealth PM hiding from the public, Ardern said she was addressing media and she was following alert level rules which complicated informal interactions.
Ardern said she was aware of reports of threats being made if teacher vaccination mandates were maintained. The PM said mandate decisions weren't made lightly.
For past mandates at the border, she said issues had been largely solved by working with employers, and this could be done with schools as well.
On Pasifika vaccination rates lagging behind national levels, Ardern said there had been strong vaccination levels among Pasifika, especially in Auckland.
Asked about concerns relating to relaxing restrictions in Auckland, Ardern said vaccination levels were high and restrictions being relaxed were not often considered high risk with regard to transmission.
Ardern was concerned about how many unvaccinated people were hospitalised with Covid. "We want to prevent illness, we want to prevent people losing their lives."
"Talk to someone you know," Ardern said when asked what message she would send to vaccine-hesitant Pasifika.
On the border, Ardern said people should be mindful about vaccination levels in other areas but a firm commitment had been made to see Aucklanders out of the region by Christmas. More information would be provided next week, including the date the border would open.
Ardern said she was aware of the toll lockdown was taking on Auckland, and that understanding was used to inform decision-making.
Ardern didn't want to speak on anyone else's behalf but she noted people could see that things were changing soon in Auckland.
On yesterday's protests and the possibility of future protests turning violent, Ardern said New Zealand was not alone, and people could have diverse perspectives on lockdowns.
"Regardless of your views, regardless of your position, there's a place for everyone's voice to be heard, please just make it kind."
Ardern said an ongoing vaccination campaign for boosters would continue past the 90 per cent threshold and they needed to be ready to vaccinate 5-11 year olds if that was enabled.
Many protest signs targeted the Prime Minister yesterday, with one referencing a derogatory meme for President Joe Biden from the United States. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Hipkins discussed vaccine certificates yesterday as a group of about 3000 protesters assembled outside Parliament expressing a range of anti-lockdown grievances.
Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Hipkins indicated a torrent of misinformation was infiltrating more discussions about Covid-19 vaccines.
Mandatory vaccinations for teachers have become a flashpoint. In the King Country, reportedly up to a third of staff at local schools are unvaccinated.
"One of the things I'm acutely aware of is, particularly in some of the smaller schools, some of that misinformation is actually having an impact on teachers' willingness to get vaccinated," Hipkins said yesterday.
"It's clear that the level of disinformation out there does seem to be growing."
The issue of vaccine certificates acquired more significance yesterday as Tourism Minister Stuart Nash announced a support scheme for big summer festivals.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern visited Auckland today. Photo / Dean Purcell
The Events Transition Support Scheme will cover 90 per cent of unrecoverable costs for paid, ticketed events for more than 5000 vaccinated people.
Major event organisers have voiced relief at the scheme but promoters of smaller events have missed out.
Urgent plea to testing
People who were at an urgent care clinic in Auckland's North Shore are being told to stay at home and get a Covid test immediately after being identified as a location of interest.
The Shore Care Urgent Care Clinic at 74 Taharoto Rd, Takapuna, was visited by a person with the virus last Thursday, November 4.
The Ministry of Health is urging anyone who was there between 12.30pm and 3.45pm to get tested.
"Stay at home, test immediately as well as five days after you were exposed at this location of interest.
"Please continue to stay at home until you receive a negative day five test result." Another location - Countdown Ōtorohanga - has been named a location of interest as well.
A person who tested positive for Covid was at the supermarket yesterday morning between 9.30am and 11.15am.
Advice for shoppers there was for them to monitor their health for the next 14 days after being exposed and get tested if any symptoms.
