Covid 19 Delta outbreak: NZ on cusp of 90 per cent fully vaxxed before Christmas

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New Zealand is set to hit the 90 per cent double-dose target today after a four-month vaccine rollout, an achievement political leaders agree belongs to the team of 5 million.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced the rounded up figure on Wednesday to applause from the House.

"You bloody deserve it!" she said, wishing Kiwis a good break as she adjourned Parliament for the year.

It was officially 89.9 per cent at Question Time, but the 7417 more jabs to make 90 per cent were already administered and due to be added to official figures today, she said.

Leader of the Opposition Chris Luxon said it was great news and thanked everyone who went and got the vaccine.

"Now let's get that rate even higher and get people getting boosted too," he said.

$644m cash injection for hospitals

Meanwhile more than half a billion dollars will be pumped into upgrading 36 hospitals across the country to allow normal care to continue among a potential influx of Covid-19 patients.

The $644 million spend comes from the Government's pandemic war chest, and includes $100m in capital spending and $544m in operating costs, including staffing to prepare for widespread Covid next year.

The funding will cover new hospital beds and upgrades to intensive care unit (ICU) capacity in some of the country's most remote and vulnerable regions.

Health Minister Andrew Little says staff at Auckland City Hospital have done phenomenal work in the last two years dealing with Covid-19 in our largest city.

"They've been the epicentre of Covid last year and this year - particularly since August this year," he told TVNZ's Breakfast today.

Little said he had been to all of the hospitals in Auckland and had seen for himself the fatigue among staff.

"I know that's a workforce that has just had enough - just had it. Tired, exhausted, fatigued, but they still turn out and provide great level care."

He acknowledged we still had gaps in the hospital system and officials were working to fill them in order to help take off some of that pressure felt by hospitals and their staff.

Little praised the work among staff at all hospitals, particularly in Auckland.
"We are so blessed."

Little acknowledged the inequities identified in our health system during the pandemic and current outbreak - as seen in the vaccination campaign.

However, between 2008 and 2018, the New Zealand population grew by about 600,000 people.

Little said we are short of a large hospital that can cater to that growth.

"A hospital the size of Middlemore or Canterbury serves a population of roughly 600,000.

"Over that 10 years, we didn't put a lot more into expanding our health capacity.

"So we are short a hospital the size of a Middlemore or Canterbury in our health system at the moment - that's the size of the catch-up problem that we've got."

Little said they would continue to commit to improving the healthcare system next year as it was something that was vital and important to the New Zealand public.

That was particularly the case during these pandemic times - as well as the threat of a new Covid strain in Omicron.

"I'm confident that we will get through this and whatever coronavirus has to throw at us, we will get through this."

Auckland's three DHBs now at 90% double vaccinated

Counties Manukau Health chief executive Fepulea'i Margie Apa says they are "incredibly proud" that the district health board region has reached 90 per cent full vaccination coverage.

The Counties Manukau DHB is one of the most diverse district health boards in the country, Apa said, with a large Māori, Pacific and Asian community.

Apa told Breakfast that because of that diversity, staff had to react and work differently in order to get the vaccination message out there and to reach those particular communities.

"We've had to offer a range of ways to get vaccinated that actually suits the nature and the way that those whānau, those communities are more likely to be able to access."

While mass vaccination drives had been widely successful, what had really worked for them, for Māori whānau, was to take vaccinations directly into that community via pop-up clinics, door-to-door and marae.

For Pasifika, local Pacific health providers set up ethnic-specific vaccination drives and events that created a festival-like and carnival type environment.

"It actually draws out our community who want to get together and come together and support each other."

Asian groups also stepped up to reach out to that community also.

Apa said the real "game-changer" for Counties Manukau DHB was listening to the likes of local youth panels and feedback from the community about how they can be reached.

That feedback was listened to and acted on - resulting in those big turnouts, she said.

The work was not yet over, however, with Pasifika still sitting on 85 per cent vaccination while Māori are on about 87 per cent full vaccination coverage.

A few moments to relax after my Booster vaccine! 90% of eligible New Zealanders have now had two doses, making us one of...

Posted by Chris Hipkins MP on Tuesday, December 14, 2021

Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said in a social media post that 175,000 boosters have already been done and the government is gearing up for "some big numbers" early next year.

Act leader David Seymour said the government needs to put New Zealand at the front of the queue for any new Pfizer vaccines that could protect against Omicron.

He lambasted the government for what he called a "disastrous" rollout.

"We are months behind the rest of the world and have paid an enormous cost. The government failed in the rollout, failed in the procurement, failed in every aspect. The high uptake belongs to New Zealanders as an achievement, not the Government."

GPs and pharmacies should have been at the centre of the rollout, and marae and iwi should have been called on right from the start, he said.

The Waipareira Trust went street by street to reach Henderson residents for its vaccination drive. Photo / Alex Burton

Photo / Alex Burton

He also asked why the PM was maintaining current Covid-19 restrictions now that nine in 10 are fully vaccinated.

"Now we're here, but the Government is determined to keep the country in unnecessarily restrictive traffic light settings," he said.

Aucklanders have had enough and should be liberated now, he said.

"It's one of the most vaccinated cities in the world. We should let Aucklanders enjoy the freedom of orange for Christmas."

Taranaki cluster grows

Vaccination celebrations aside, Taranaki is now home to the country's latest Covid cluster with 15 new cases in the township of Eltham, worrying residents in the run-up to Christmas.

The majority of cases are students at an Eltham school now closed for the summer break, and many were in the same class, said South Taranaki mayor Phil Nixon.

Taranaki residents are asked to monitor the Ministry website for locations of interest. Photo / Alan Gibson

No adults are infected so far, but Nixon expects the number to go up.

"There's a big feeling of apprehension around the town at the moment. We're in orange, but people have started to social distance and take their own precautions. People are pretty worried," he said.

The 150 students on the school roll ended off their year on Tuesday with a Christmas performance, posted to the school's social media page.

In Eltham leading the testing response, Māori Party co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer spoke to a number of families affected by the outbreak and said many were shocked and confused.

"These whānau are going to be in isolation for Christmas. They don't know what happens with work, with whānau and some of them only have one person in the house with Covid - they don't know if they'll get it too, or may even already have it.

"It's a scary time for a lot of whānau here, but the community is wrapping around them."

Teams were travelling to residents' homes to test close contacts or people who had someone with Covid-19 already isolating at the property.

"We are above 20 confirmed and probable cases now. I don't think we will be seeing the back of this for some time to come," the MP said.

She said saliva testing operated by two local iwi in the town on Sunday had been effective, detecting 11 initial cases at the school.

"These kids don't like the idea of a big stick up their nose. Saliva testing probably really helped getting them out here."

The Health Ministry said positive cases are self-isolating and initial interviews suggest they are all linked to the Eltham case reported on Sunday.

Taranaki residents are asked to monitor the ministry website for locations of interest.

The Taranaki cluster comes as New Zealand reported 74 new community cases and one Covid-related death, the country's 48th.

The person who died was being cared for at Tauranga Hospital.

Auckland cases down for third week

Wednesday's cases are in Auckland (56), Waikato (9), Bay of Plenty (7), Lakes (1) and Canterbury (1).

Auckland's case numbers have dropped dramatically, with 22 per cent fewer cases than the week prior. This decline was mirrored across all three Auckland Metro DHBs.

The region's Counties Manukau DHB also hit the 90 per cent double vaccination rate yesterday, joining the Auckland and Waitemata DHBs in reaching the milestone.

Counties Manukau has the second biggest eligible Maori population for a DHB and the largest eligible Pacific population in the country.

Drive through vaccination centre at Verissimo Drive near Auckland Airport New Zealand Herald photograph by Alex burton 24 October 2021

"The long battle to suppress Covid-19 and protect our community has consumed so many people," said Manurewa-Papakura Ward councillor Daniel Newman.

"That we have achieved 90 per cent is due to our clinicians, our kaimahi and business sponsors, and especially the hundreds of thousands of South Auckland residents who have followed the health advice and made an informed decision to roll up their sleeves."

The average age of current hospitalisations has gone up slightly to 50.

Sixty-one Covid patients are in hospital, including four in ICU. Of those being treated in hospital, 11 are in North Shore, 24 in Auckland, 22 in Middlemore, two in Waikato, one in Tauranga and one in Christchurch.