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February 18, 2022
No let up for vaccines despite Omicron disruption
Adam Gifford
Posted On February 18, 2022
Download AudioAssociate Health Minister Peeni Henare says Māori providers need to keep vaccinating even as cases of Omicron are rising.
Some Auckland providers are complaining they are waiting on funding from the Health Ministry for the work they are doing to support whānau who are isolating.
And Waipareira has postponed its vaccination battalion trip to Te Taitokerau because of the uncertainty surrounding Omicron.
Mr Henare says heath providers want to pivot from vaccinations to caring for whānau in their houses.
“We’ve also said it’s the time to be boosted, it’s time to be tested, it’s time to be vaccinated and of course, we still having worryingly low numbers of Māori tamariki receiving the vaccine which is cause for concern if we are looking to pivot away from vaccines towards caring in the community and that’s simply because of the fact we’ve got a limited workforce,” he says.
Mr Henare says more help is on the way for Māori providers.
The Ministry for Social Development today announced funding for 197 extra Community Connectors to help whānau who are isolating to access support.
That brings the total number of connectors to 500
Minsiter Carmel Sepuloni says it’s also ramping up support to food banks and other food providers, as food continues to be the most identified need for people isolating and accounts for 67 percent of MSD hardship grants.
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