December 18, 2023
Covid fear from Christmas gatherings
Have plenty of RAT tests in your Christmas stocking.
That’s the advice from Te Aka Whai Ora chief medical officer Rawiri McKree Jansen says whanau gather for the holiday season at the same time as the fifth wave of Covid-19 washes over the country.
He’s especially concerned for Māori and Pacifica aged 50 and over, who should make sure they are up to date with their boosters, and then test if they feel unwell.
“We’re just encouraging people to isolate, take RAT test if you’re a household contact. And that might be quite a big household, I guess, in our holiday settings. But also, if we’ve got people who are in the age range who get Covid, let’s make sure they get access to the medicine,” Dr Jansen says.