Tuesday March 8

There are 23,894 new cases of Covid-19 today.

Contributing factors to the decrease in case numbers seen in the previous few days are likely to have been either due to a lower level of testing and a lower level of self-reporting of RAT results, or a combination of both.

Of today's cases, there are 718 in Northland, 9,881 in Auckland, 2,146 in Waikato, 1,691 in Bay of Plenty , 660 in Lakes, 707 in Hawke’s Bay, 632 in MidCentral, 166 in Whanganui, 525 in Taranaki, 366 in Tairāwhiti,  136 in Wairarapa, 1,787 in Capital and Coast, 1,061 in Hutt Valley, 435 in Nelson Marlborough, 1,903 in Canterbury, 129 in South Canterbury, 914 in Southern, 30 in West Coast and 7 in unknown locations. 

The seven-day rolling average of cases is today 18,669, up again from 17,921 yesterday.

Hospitalisations

There are 756 people in hospital. 16 people are in ICU or High Dependency Units.

The average age of people currently in hospital is 56.

Based on available data, the Ministry of Health says unvaccinated people are four times over-represented in the current hospitalisation data.  

Just 3 percent of eligible people aged 12 and over in New Zealand have had no doses of the vaccine. However, of the eligible people in Northland and Auckland hospitals with Covid-19, 19.4 percent have had no doses of the vaccine.   

Rapid Antigen Tests

Contributing factors to the decrease in case numbers seen in the previous few days are likely to have been either a lower level of testing and a lower level of self-reporting of RAT test results, or a combination of both.

If you take a RAT you must report the result, positive or negative. This can be done online through my COVID Record, or by calling 0800 222 478 between 8am and 8pm. 

Vaccinations

96.6 percent of New Zealand's eligible population have had the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, and 95.2 percent have had a second dose.

72.5 percent of the eligible population have had a booster shot.

The total number of active community cases sits at 192,452.

Click here for a list of updated locations of interest.

Top Image: Te Whanau O Waipareira vax team in their campervans help vaccinate locals in Papakura as part of Whanau Ora campaign. (Photo by Fiona Goodall/Getty Images)

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