There are 145 new community cases in Northland, Auckland, Waikato, Bay of Plenty and Canterbury.
The two cases the Ministry of Health is reporting in Northland today came in after the 9am cut off and will be officially added to the case numbers tomorrow.
The case in Canterbury was announced in yesterday’s statement but is being officially added to the case numbers today.
One previously reported border case has been reclassified as under investigation so today’s net increase is 148 cases.
Death of a patient at Auckland City Hospital
A patient with Covid-19 has died at Auckland City Hospital. The patient, who was in their 80s, was admitted to hospital on November 17.
*Hospitalisations
Today the Ministry of Health is reporting one person in Rotorua Hospital’s ICU. This is the same person the ministry had been reporting earlier in the week. They were mistakenly not included in yesterday’s numbers.
Regional updates
The ministry is asking anyone in the following regions with symptoms – no matter how mild – to please get tested, even if you’re vaccinated. Please remain isolated until you return a negative test result. And if you’re not vaccinated, your DHB or local health provider will have plenty of opportunities to make this happen.
Northland
There are two new cases to report in Ruakākā today. These were reported after the 9am cut-off and will be officially added to the case numbers tomorrow.
In addition, a case previously reported in Auckland has been reclassified as a Northland case. They are currently isolating in Kaikohe.
The two new cases in Ruakākā are linked to an existing case and have been isolating.
Anyone in Ruakākā with symptoms – no matter how mild – is encouraged to get a test. A pop-up testing site is continuing to operate at the Ruakākā Racecourse over the weekend and is open at the following times:
· 9am-3pm Saturday
· 10am-2pm Sunday
Testing and vaccination sites open in Northland can be found on the Northland DHB website.
New locations of interest in Northland continue to be added to the Ministry website
Auckland
Today, there are 127 new cases to report in Auckland.
Health staff are now supporting 3,993 people to isolate at home, including 1,078 cases.
Waikato
There are 13 new cases to report in Waikato today – six are in Te Kūiti, three in Huntly, two in Hamilton, one in Te Kauwhata, and one in Ōtorohanga. All are under investigation for links to previous cases.
There are six pop-up and dedicated testing sites operating across Waikato today in Hamilton, Ōtorohanga, Thames, Huntly, and Te Kûiti. For more information, visit the DHB’s website.
Health staff in the region are now supporting 128 cases to isolate at home.
This weekend in the Waikato there is a big push to encourage unvaccinated Māori to get their jab. The “Weekend wero” will encouraging kaumatua and their whānau to get vaccinated together. People can go to around 25 events across the takiwā this weekend without a booking.
Across the different locations there will be free food, entertainment, spot prizes and more.
Bay of Plenty
Today we are reporting four new cases today in Bay of Plenty. All four have been linked to previously confirmed cases.
One case is based in Kawerau, one is in Tauranga and two are in Te Puke.
The person based in Kawerau is a close contact of a previously confirmed case, and has been in isolation for the past week.
Investigations are continuing and while public health staff don’t expect a large number of locations of interest as a result, if and when they’re identified, they will be added to the Ministry of Health’s website. This is updated regularly.
Bay of Plenty DHB is opening a pop up testing site from tomorrow at Waitaha Hauora/Nga Kakano Family Health Services at the Sikh Temple in Te Puke.
The DHB has also been working with local providers in Kawerau to provide more testing capacity for the town. Additional testing is available today until 6pm and again from 10 until 6 tomorrow at the Te Puna Ora o Mataatua, Ron Hardie Recreation Centre carpark in Kawerau.
Please check the DHB’s website for further details.
Two of the three other cases are also close contacts of previously confirmed cases and have been in isolation.
Public health staff want to reiterate the message to Bay of Plenty locals to get tested if you’re feeling unwell and get your first dose of the vaccine if you haven’t already.
Details of testing stations in Bay of Plenty can be found on the Healthpoint website.
Omicron variant
The Ministry’s release included this update about the Omicron variant:
“Health officials are currently assessing the latest international information on the new B.1.1529 variant which the World Health Organization has named Omicron.
This particular strain is in its infancy and as with any emerging developments to do with Covid-19 we are closely watching and monitoring evidence and countries’ responses.
We will advise on any potential impacts for New Zealand, noting that we remain in a good position to minimise the impact of any new variants with isolation and routine testing of international arrivals.”
