Dr Ashley Bloomfield appears before the Health Select Committee and reveals Auckland's peak in Covid-19 case numbers could be known within days. Video / Parliament TV
The next few days should indicate whether Auckland's Omicron outbreak has peaked, but the rest of the country was still some way off, director general of health Dr Ashley Bloomfield says.
Speaking before the Health Select Committee this morning, Bloomfield said they were watching closely case numbers in the next few days, and that should indicate whether Auckland has reached its peak number of cases.
But the rest of the country would see peaks at different times, he said.
Asked about hospitalisation rates and how many were seriously ill because of Covid-19 or had simply tested positive while admitted for something else, Bloomfield said they were working to compile that data. A difficulty was it was only indicated on discharge.
Hospitalisations from the first week had shown about 75 per cent in hospital because of the severity of their Covid-19 infection, but this was expected to drop as Covid-19 became more widespread, he said.
About 40 per cent of people turning up to emergency departments were testing positive for Covid-19, but again some would be seeking care for the virus and others for separate reasons.
National's Covid-19 spokesman Chris Bishop questioned officials and Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins over rules around vaccine mandates for children.
There are no mandates around school activities, but private institutions, such as sports clubs, are able to implement mandates. Issues have arisen however where schools utilise clubs for various activities.
Bishop said he was aware of a 13-year-old barred from kayaking due to not being vaccinated.
Hipkins said mandates were under constant review, and while they'd sought to ensure all school and school-related activities were not covered, he was aware there remained issues.
All mandates would expire in June anyway, and if the advice then was that they would not provide any material benefits then they could be gone in time for winter sports, he said.
It was too soon to provide any guarantees, he said.
Bishop said mandates were legally under constant review, and so Hipkins could make changes immediately.
"Can I implore you... there is a group of young people out there... I implore you to review the interaction of the framework when it comes to young people and sport, in particular, if there is something you can do in the short term."
Meanwhile, staff working at an Auckland hospital at the epicentre of the Omicron outbreak are stressed and weary, and hoping the worst of the pandemic will be over soon.
Counties Manukau DHB chief executive Dr Pete Watson this morning revealed personnel at Middlemore Hospital are under pressure but continue to work hard to treat the more than 150 Covid patients now on their wards. They were also hoping cases would plateau in coming weeks.
"It's really tough. I've got to be honest - people are tired. Many people are going off sick and it's stressful.
"It's a day at a time," Watson told TVNZ's Breakfast.
With 202,257 active cases in the community - nearly 50,000 in South Auckland - and an increasingly fatigued health workforce, Hipkins and Bloomfield appeared this morning at the select committee to give an update on the Covid response as it enters its worst phase to date.
Hipkins has revealed this morning he is now in isolation after one of his children contracted Covid.
The Minister for the Covid-19 Response told Newstalk ZB's Mike Hosking his 5-year-old tested positive last night - the same day he announced that home isolation rules would change from 10 days to seven from 11.59pm on Friday.
He appeared at the select committee via Zoom.
Watson said there were just over 150 Covid patients at Middlemore Hospital and, of those, four were in the intensive care unit.
Five wards at the hospital were now dedicated to treating Covid-infected patients.
It was hoped the peak of Covid cases would happen over the next few weeks, he said.
Watson said many staff were also personally affected by Covid and had needed to isolate.
Procedures or services at the South Auckland hospital that could be delayed had been put on ice in order to focus on Covid patients.
Middlemore Hospital staff are under pressure, with many falling sick, as the number of patients with Covid balloons to more than 150. Photo / Michael Craig
Watson said many of these patients had other underlying health conditions which meant getting Covid could be fatal.
He said all the evidence they were seeing - on infection rates, ICU and death rates - was that the booster shot "certainly makes a difference" and remained a key strategy to fighting Covid.
Meanwhile, Hipkins said a decision was still to be made on whether to appeal the case that ruled vaccine mandates in the police and defence workforces to be unlawful.
He said that the particular case was "narrow" and a wider case was currently before the same judge that involved teachers and nurses.
The case potentially had greater implications and other workforces would be considering what the ruling would be and what it meant for them.
Hipkins said it was "unlikely" there would be future mandates for the police.
"What we have heard from the police is, while they wanted that requirement put in place earlier on, they think they now have it covered and they don't think they need it now."
He said discussions were ongoing with the New Zealand Defence Force.
Hipkins also addressed MIQ being scaled back, with only four out of 32 hotels staying in the network from the end of June.
