COVID-19 Immunisation Programme Cabinet Papers and Minutes

In reference to the Cabinet paper Updated approach to the Sequencing Framework for COVID-19 vaccines (considered on 8 March 2021), to address the needs of Māori and Pacific people, it was agreed by Cabinet to: 

• partner with Māori and Pacific providers to deliver vaccinations in their communities, who will be provided with ongoing vaccine allocations from Group 2 
• ensure sufficient supply of doses for Māori and Pacific providers to distribute to older people living in whānau environment in hard to reach places, and their household 
• adopt a whānau-centred approach through DHBs and other providers 
• support Māori and Pacific providers to meet vaccination demand beyond their enrolled populations, including through targeted investments to build provider infrastructure and workforce capability. 
• As part of our rollout plan, people living in long-term residential care homes (aged residential care and disability residential support services) are part of Group 2; however, we know that Māori and Pacific peoples are less likely to live in residential care. 

Therefore, we have allocated sufficient courses to Māori and Pacific providers to vaccinate older Māori and Pacific people who live with whānau, and their household members, where the risks of exposure and harm are similar to a residential care situation.

The second tranche of documents released relate to the Cabinet papers produced in December 2020 and February 2021. The briefings are:

• 15 January 2021: Draft Cabinet paper: February 2021 update on the COVID-19 Immunisation Strategy and Programme
• 12 November 2020: Draft Cabinet paper: Update on COVID-19 Immunisation Strategy and Programme
• 11 September 2020: COVID-19 Immunisation Programme: Update
• 21 August 2020: COVID-19 Immunisation Prioritisation and Implementation Approach

Some information has been withheld from the documents under the following sections of the Official Information Act 1982:

• 6(a) - to protect the security or defence of New Zealand or the international relations of the Government of New Zealand
• 6(b)(i) and 6(b)(ii) - to prejudice the entrusting of information to the Government of New Zealand on a basis of confidence by the Government of any other country or any agency of such a Government; or any international organisation
• 9(2)(a) - to protect the privacy of natural persons, including that of deceased natural persons
• 9(2)(b)(ii) - to protect information where the making available of the information would be likely unreasonably to prejudice the commercial position of the person who supplied or who is the subject of the information
• 9(2)(g)(i) - to maintain the effective conduct of public affairs through the free and frank expression of opinions by or between or to Ministers of the Crown or members of an organisation or officers and employees of any public service agency or organisation in the course of their duty
• 9(2)(f)(iv) - to maintain the constitutional conventions for the time being which protect  of advice tendered by Ministers of the Crown and officials
• 9(2)(h) - to maintain legal professional privilege
• 9(2)(j) - to enable a Minister of the Crown or any public service agency or organisation holding the information to carry on, without prejudice or disadvantage, negotiations (including commercial and industrial negotiations)

Please note documents documents relating to decisions about the Government's response to COVID-19 are also proactively released on the Unite Against COVID-19 website