If you're over 60 and haven't had your Covid-19 vaccination, today is your day.
The government has opened up group 4, which means everyone over 16 will have an opportunity to get the vaccine by the end of the year but vaccine hesitancy may still be an issue.
And while the nation's leader looked chuffed today when receiving her second jab and becoming fully vaccinated, Jacinda Ardern hopes other people will do so too. She gave a clear message today from the Hamilton-based vaccination centre saying, "My ask of the team of five million is simple: Get vaccinated".
She was also clear that the country required a high number of vaccinated people to try to withstand the virus that continues to rage in many parts of the world.
"You don’t need to look far to see why [vaccination] is so important,” Ardern said. “The Delta variant is spreading around the world. Even nations with high rates of vaccination are seeing daily cases in the tens of thousands, and hospitalisations and deaths.”
October completion
About two million people are eligible in group 4. It will begin with those over 60. People over 35 will begin in September. The government estimates it won't reach everyone between 16 and 34 till October.
Ministry of Health data shows 65,812 Māori have been vaccinated and almost 700,000 people across the country can say they are fully vaccinated. The prime minister says over the past week there has been a 40 per cent increase in the number of vaccines administered – 204,943 in the past seven days, with that number set to keep rising.
Although today was the first day for over 60's, it was only a small section of group four, made up of about 160,000 people.
The government will be happy to beat the country's best vaccination numbers so far, and administer 38,600 doses across the country. “That’s a record for us. That’s what we want to continue to see as we scale up,” Ardern says.
When questioned about how Māori are faring in the vaccine totals Māori Health Minister Peeni Henare took heart in the data saying “We’re tracking alongside and even, in some DHBs, better than the non-Māori population.”
Mass vaccination shortfall
It has been reported that only 20 per cent of group 3 has had its first dose of the vaccine.
Henare says 77% of the Māori population are in the 16 to 64 age bracket and anticipates a high number of Māori to be represented in this group.
A drive for mass vaccination in South Auckland this weekend is reported to be experiencing hesitancy. RNZ reported about 12,500 people were sent vaccination invitations to the event. The invitation asked people to book for themselves and their families but only 3000 of those booked a spot in the country's first mass vaccination event.
Minister of Health, Andrew Little said he didn't know what the drivers for the low numbers were.
While the mass vaccination event is set for the weekend, the government also plans on using Koroneihana and the Auckland Kapa Haka event as vaccine information-sharing locations.