September 07, 2021
ACT vax secret tweet despicable
A Māori doctor working at the front line of the Covid response says ACT leader David Seymour’s blasting out of a priority code for Māori to get vaccines was despicable.
Matire Harwood says the code sent out by Te Whānau o Waipareira was one of the many ways being tried to up the number of Māori getting their shots.
That was undermined by the MP trying to make a point Māori and Pasifika are the beneficiaries of unequal treatment, when in fact the lower Māori vaccination rate shows inequality is running the other way.
“We’re much under in terms of our rates of vaccination so anything that supports whānau, makes them feel safe to get the vaccine is what we should be supporting and that sort of behaviour is despicable and really undermines the idea of the team of 5 million,” Dr Harwood says.
A change in Auckland to a surveillance testing regime is a sign authorities are getting on top of the delta outbreak, but people still need to remember to scan in, wear masks and stay home if they feel unwell.