New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Monday that the country’s pandemic elimination strategy was working, as it announced an extension to the national closure due to a growing outbreak of the COVID-19 Delta.
Why it’s important: NZ closed last Tuesday after detecting the first community case in nearly six months, marking Delta’s arrival in the island nation. The cluster has grown to 107 cases, with 35 more people testing positive for the virus on Monday.
What they say: Ardern said in a briefing that “for now, the strategy is absolute elimination” that the government should use, as coronavirus vaccines continue to increase across the country.
- “We know a removal strategy has worked before,” he added, noting the long periods in which New Zealand residents had not enjoyed restrictions and said he was willing to return to that level.
The big picture: Ardern said in the briefing that the entire country would remain at its highest blockade level until shortly before midnight on Friday. This would be reviewed.
- But Auckland, the epicenter of the outbreak that was tracked in Sydney, would remain at alert level 4 until 31 August.
Between lines: Scientist Shaun Hendy, who heads a government advisory body, told Axios via email that the Level 4 restrictions were effective and “we should start seeing a decrease in cases by the end of this week.”
- “At the moment, we are still seeing reported cases that became infected before entering a closure,” said the head of the research center Te Pūnaha Matatini.
- Australia faces outbreaks across the country, and New South Wales recorded a record 830 cases. Sydney, the state capital, the epicenter of the virus has been strictly closed since late June, but the state has not seen the same level of compliance with health measures as in New Zealand.
What to see: The elimination strategy would remain the best option as long as the blockade reduced the number of cases as expected, according to Hendy.
- COVID-19 vaccine coverage of 70-80% of New Zealand’s total population could see the country’s restriction strategy change, according to Hendy, who is also a professor at the University of Auckland.
Editor’s Note: This article has been updated with new details everywhere.