Covid 19 Omicron outbreak: MoH acknowledges long waits to report RAT results over the phone

Rapid antigen testing is now the most common form of testing. Photo / Chris Weissenborn

The Ministry of Health is acknowledging long waits to report Rapid Antigen test (RAT) results over the phone, after urging the public to record their results yesterday.

Today 15,161 community cases of Covid-19 were reported, marking the second day in a row the daily count has been below 20,000.

The Ministry of Health said they believed the decline could be due to people failing to report their results from RATs, whether positive or negative.

Currently only people above the age of 12 can report through My Covid Record, while parents and caregivers are asked to report young children's positive results by calling 0800 222 478.

An Auckland woman who contacted the Herald said it had taken several days to record her 6-year-old daughter's positive result.

She said she had managed to record her 12-year-old son's positive RAT result online, but had needed to phone up to record the positive result of her younger child.

She called and left her number two days in a row, before calling again on the third day and waiting on hold until someone answered.

"The woman sounded very stressed. They are dealing with a big volume I understand," she said.

A Ministry of Health spokesperson said they acknowledged there had been delays in reporting over the phone.

"The Ministry of Health acknowledges there have been some waits for people who have called the 0800 number to report their Rapid Antigen Test results during a period of high demand."

Staffing across the shifts has now been increased to match the call demand of the RATs 0800 number, said the spokesperson.

"Other Ministry contracted call centres have been provided with training and access to assist with responses to requests for RATs and recording results.

"This will help reduce the time people have to wait to speak to [an] operator."

"We want to acknowledge and thank people for reporting their RATs results, negative or positive, which helps support public health decision-making in response to the pandemic."