Media release
There are 83 new cases of COVID-19 in New Zealand made up of 78 new confirmed cases and 5 probable cases. This is as at 9.00 am this morning.
There are 50 individuals that we can confirm have recovered.
We have 12 people in hospital with COVID-19. There are 3 in Wellington Regional Hospital, 1 in Wairau Hospital (Blenheim), 1 in Nelson Hospital, 2 in Whangarei Hospital and 1 each in Auckland, Waikato, Taranaki, Dunedin and Greymouth hospitals.
There are two people in ICU, one on a ventilator. For privacy reasons we won’t be providing other details on these patients.
Our laboratories are working to process and report test results as quickly as possible. Taken over a seven-day period, our average daily test number is 1613.
Anyone who has been tested is expected to be in strict self-isolation until advised of the result of their test – that means effectively quarantining themselves from other members of their family.
We are still seeing a strong link to overseas travel, as well as links to confirmed cases.
We continue to investigate several possible clusters.
The combined total of confirmed and probable cases in New Zealand is 451.
Pregnancy & COVID-19
We want to send some important messages to pregnant women and their whanau.
We know you may be particularly concerned about what COVID-19 means for you and your family. Please talk to your midwife to get the best advice and see the information on the New Zealand College of Midwives website.
Seeing your midwife for routine or urgent check-ups is still necessary throughout this lock down period. Your midwife will do as much of your check-up as they can either over the phone or by face to face video call. Your midwife may talk with you about reducing the number of face to face check-ups you have over this period. Please talk to your midwife about the best location for your check-ups (your home or a midwifery clinic).
More detailed information for pregnant women will be published on the Ministry's website in the coming days.
Kindness & restraint
Finally, the Ministry of Health wants to reiterate messages around social media.
We join in the call for kindness and restraint on social media after reports of abuse to people with confirmed COVID-19.
We all understand there is a high level of anxiety in the community but it’s not acceptable to attack people who have been caught up in this pandemic.
We need to look out for each other. We want people with symptoms of COVID-19 to get tested so we can manage this outbreak and recognise clusters of transmission and stop them from spreading.
Media contact
Charlotte Gendall
Phone: 021 500 947