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National | News

Anyone with Covid-19 symptoms advised to get tested

The Ministry of Health is advising anyone with Covid-19 symptoms to get tested.

"We want to see even higher rates of testing. Ideally, every person who has Covid-19 related symptoms will get a test. That will be complemented by specific surveillance testing like the pop-up clinic at the Pak'nSave in Queenstown, which had more than 400 people through by midday today," the ministry says.

It comes after the World Health Organisation director-general Dr Tedros this morning said while a number of vaccines are in clinical trials there is no "silver bullet" for Covid-19.

The ministry says stopping outbreaks of this virus comes down to public health basics and disease control.

"We are intercepting and isolating cases of Covid-19 at our border –  but we need good baseline testing rates among people working at our border and in our communities each day so we can remain confident we have no community transmission in New Zealand.”

The ministry says a single case outside managed isolation could rapidly infect many other people and turn into a widespread outbreak as seen overseas.

“Many places that had Covid-19 under control have quickly found themselves in the middle of a resurgence. We have worked too hard to be where we are to let that happen.”

No new cases

Meanwhile, there are no new cases of Covid-19 reported in New Zealand today and five previously reported cases have recovered.

That brings the number of active cases in managed isolation facilities to 22, the Ministry of Health says.

There is no one in the country receiving hospital-level care and confirmed cases remain at 1,217.

“It has been 95 days since the last case of COVID-19 was acquired locally from an unknown source,” the ministry says.

Yesterday 1,608 tests were processed including 383 tests in managed isolation and quarantine facilities.

Anyone with symptoms is advised to contact a general practitioner or Healthline.