Yesterday New Zealand saw its lowest number of community cases since February. Photo / File
A further 3387 new Covid-19 cases have been reported by health officials today.
Twelve Covid-related deaths have also been reported today.
Two of these people were from Auckland, three were from Waikato, two were from MidCentral, one was from Whanganui, three were from Canterbury and one person was from the Southern region.
Three were in their 60s, one was in their 70s, six were in their 80s and two were aged over 90.
Four were women and eight were men.
Meanwhile, there are 536 cases in hospital, including 13 in ICU.
The seven-day rolling average of hospitalisations is 570; last Monday, it was 660.
The seven-day rolling average increase in total deaths attributable to the virus is now 14.
Of the 3387 new cases reported today, 171 people had recently travelled overseas.
There is a total of 29,598 active cases in the country.
In total, there have been 1750 deaths confirmed as attributable to Covid-19, either as the underlying cause of death or as a contributing factor.
Hundreds of people with Covid-19 remain in hospitals across the country. They are in: Northland (26), Waitematā (69), Counties Manukau (62), Auckland (56), Waikato (70), Bay of Plenty (18), Lakes (10), Hawke's Bay (44), MidCentral (15), Whanganui (10), Taranaki (12), Wairarapa (eight), Capital & Coast (17), Hutt Valley (12), Nelson Marlborough (seven), Canterbury (67), West Coast (three), South Canterbury (14) and Southern (16).
Otago University epidemiologist Professor Michael Baker said yesterday that although we might be seeing the end of this wave, it does not mean we are seeing the end of Covid in New Zealand just yet.
Baker said Sunday's numbers were "part of the downward trend we have seen over the course of this last month".
He acknowledged the pattern that has emerged over the course of the pandemic that numbers are always lower on Sunday and Monday, but he confirmed that today's numbers are "very much a low point".
"The rolling average is going down consistently, what we would expect to see is it move down to a new plateau and that it will hopefully stay for a period, but we can't expect this disease to completely disappear".
Baker said he hoped that one day the disease would become endemic, but that milestone was still a dream for Covid, which has proved time again just how unpredictable it is.
"What happens next is really hard to know. We could see if numbers continue to go down to these low levels, that this becomes endemic, however, we can only give it that name when it becomes predictable, which Covid is far from as it continues to develop variants and sub-variants".
He maintained that although these numbers are promising, it is far from the time we can get complacent due to the strain that still exists on the New Zealand health system.
"We are definitely not out of the woods at all with this virus because it is still having a major health impact on New Zealand".
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