Covid 19 Omicron outbreak: 188 new cases in Whanganui DHB area

There are 188 new cases of Covid-19 in the Whanganui District Health Board region.

There are also five cases now in Whanganui Hospital.

The figures were announced by the Ministry of Health on Friday afternoon as part of 20,989 new community Covid-19 cases in New Zealand.

Whanganui District Health Board updates now include figures from the South Taranaki, with the boundary being the Pātea River.

New cases were found in Whanganui, Rangitīkei, Ruapehu and South Taranaki.

From 11.59pm Friday, the isolation period for Covid-19 cases and their household contacts will be reduced to seven days.

Household contacts will need to have a rapid antigen test at day three and day seven of their isolation period.

If they become symptomatic they should also get a test, and if the result is positive, they are required to isolate for seven days from that point.

If a person is isolating and still has symptoms after seven days, they are advised to stay home until 24 hours after symptoms resolve.

The Whanganui DHB reported 294 new cases on Friday.

The ministry says its daily reported cases may differ from those reported by a DHB because of different reporting cut-off times.