January 24, 2022
Eight further Omicron cases detected on Day 1 of Red settings
Tēnā anō koutou katoa e ngā kairaranga o te oranga.
Today, a further eight cases of the Omicron variant have been detected in the community. This brings the total number of cases associated with the January Omicron cluster to 19 – all of which are isolating and working with public health officials to support contact tracing. These numbers are being reported just one day after the Prime Minister announced all of Aotearoa would be moving to Red light settings from 11.59pm last night.
I want to remind whānau that Red settings do not mean border restrictions and many of the services you might normally use are still available such as food and retail. We should remain calm but cautious. Try to go about life as normally as possible while adhering to Red settings under the COVID-19 protection framework. I have included details on what Red means for you and your whānau below.
As we are aware, Omicron is more infectious than previous variants of COVID-19. The number of cases and contacts are expected to grow given the highly transmissible nature of Omicron and as public health kaimahi learn more from case interviews. Our current strategy intends to minimise the spread of Omicron to keep the pressure off our health system and to protect whānau who may be more prone to the harms associated with the Omicron variant. We are prioritising whole genome sequencing on unlinked cases in order to establish links, slow the spread and identify new cases as they arise.
I want to mihi to our public health kaimahi across the motu who are managing confirmed and potential Omicron cases in the community through rapidly isolating cases and contacts, contact tracing and testing in order to slow the spread. If you or your whānau are experiencing any symptoms of COVID-19, I urge you to isolate and get tested as soon as possible. All testing locations nationwide are available at Healthpoint.co.nz. Again, getting your booster vaccine if you’re eligible will provide an additional layer of protection. If it has been four months since your second dose, go to BookMyVaccine or walk-in to a vaccination centre to get your booster.
Moving to Red and what that means for you and your whānau
Whānau should stay calm and go about life as normally as possible. For vaccinated people, life at Red means doing most of what you would normally do while following familiar tikanga hauora like wearing a face covering and keeping physical distance from others.
At Red, people now must wear a mask at food and drink businesses, close-proximity businesses, and events and gatherings except when eating and drinking. People are encouraged to wear a mask whenever they leave the house and keep physical distance between themselves and people outside of their household wherever they can.
Hospitality businesses can open but are capped at 100 people indoors and customers must be seated and separated. Events and gatherings for vaccinated people are reduced to 100. If people at an event are not vaccinated, that reduces further to 25.
In retail and public places like libraries and museums, there will be limits on those in a space based on the ability to maintain physical distancing. Businesses and workplaces remain open but where a workplace deems it appropriate, they may choose to have employees work from home.
As always, anyone with symptoms should isolate immediately and call Healthline (0800 358 5453) or your doctor. If you test positive, you will need to isolate for 14 days and your close contacts will need to isolate for at least 10 days. Help and support, including financial support, will be available for you while you are isolating. You can read more about life at Red online.
General update – 25 new cases, 10 people in hospital, and 84% Māori fully vaccinated
There is a total of 25 new community cases to report in Aotearoa today. Of these, four are in Te Tai Tokerau, 13 are in Tāmaki Makaurau, four are in Waikato, one is in Lakes, one is in MidCentral, and two are in Nelson/Tasman. This brings the total number of cases associated with this outbreak to 11,515.
For the Māori vaccination rollout, 89 per cent of our whānau have had one dose of the vaccine, and 84 per cent have had their second. Ka mutu, there are currently 10 people in hospital with COVID-19. None of these people are in ICU or HDU.
Locations of interest and testing
Initial locations of interest have been identified across Auckland and the Nelson Tasman region and these will be published on the Ministry’s website as they are confirmed. We are encouraging everyone in these regions to check the locations of interest and follow the public health advice.
If you are māuiui, stay home and get a test – at the moment, that is the same PCR test with a nasopharyngeal swab that we have used successfully over the last two years. If you are required to isolate, you will receive advice and – if needed – support to do so; at this stage you will need to isolate for 14 days if you are a case, and 10 days if you are a close contact.
All testing locations nationwide are available at Healthpoint. We expect there will be high demand, and it’s important that those who need to be tested are the ones who we test first. Anyone with symptoms, anyone who has been to a location of interest at the times notified, should isolate immediately and get tested promptly.
13 new cases in Tāmaki Makaurau
There are 13 cases to report in Tāmaki Makaurau today. Health and welfare providers are now supporting 676 people in the region to isolate at home, including 157 cases.
Residents and staff of an Auckland aged residential care facility (Summerset by the Park Rest Home Flat Bush) have been tested for COVID-19 after a worker who tested positive was linked to the current Omicron outbreak. The rest home is now closed to visitors. Anyone who visited the rest home since Tuesday 18 January is asked to monitor for COVID-19 symptoms for 10 days after exposure. If symptoms develop, get a test and stay at home until you return a negative test result.
Four new cases in Te Tai Tokerau
There have been four new cases in the Kaitaia area. All are contacts of previously reported cases in Kaitaia. In addition, one case reported last week has been admitted to hospital.
Four new cases in Waikato
There are four new cases in Waikato today, which are all linked to previously reported cases. Two are from Hamilton, one if from Atiamuri and one with location under investigation. Pop-up testing sites are operating in Te Kūiti, Ngāruawāhia, Huntly, Taumarunui, Tokoroa, Putāruru and Hamilton today. There were 480 tests processed in Waikato yesterday and 1882 vaccinations given.
One new case in Lakes
There is one new case to report in the Rotorua District, linked to a previously reported case.
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Please remind your friends and whānau to get information on COVID-19 and the vaccine from our trusted sources – the Ministry of Health website, Unite Against COVID channels, Karawhiua channels, and Te Puni Kōkiri ‘COVID-19 Information for Māori’ portal.
For guidance on protecting yourself and your whānau from COVID-19 misinformation and scams, please visit the Unite Against COVID website.
If you have any questions, feel free to contact me or my team at Māorihealth@health.govt.nz
Mā te Atua tātou e manaaki i roto i ngā āhuatanga o te wā,
Nāhaku me aku mihi aroha.