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National | Health

Thirteen new Covid-19 cases, six people in hospital

Thirteen new confirmed cases of Covid-19 have been reported in the community today and no new cases of people who have returned from overseas and are in managed isolation.

Health director-general Dr Ashley Bloomfield said 12 of the new cases wee linked to the Auckland cluster. The other one remained under investigation but was believed to be linked to the same cluster.

“There are 98 people linked to the cluster who have been moved into the Auckland quarantined facility. That includes 44 people who have tested positive and the balance are household contacts.”

There are six people receiving hospital-level care for Covid-19.

"Two are in Auckland City Hospital while four are in Middlemore. None are requiring intensive care,"  Dr Bloomfield said.

There are 90 active cases in New Zealand including 69 from the recent community outbreak in Auckland, 20 imported cases, and one further community case not linked to the Auckland cluster.

Covid-19 update in Beehive Theatre. There are 90 active cases in New Zealand including 69 from the recent community outbreak in Auckland. Read more: https://bit.ly/3iKZP8o

Posted by Te Ao Māori News on Monday, August 17, 2020

New case not linked 

Dr Bloomfield says the community case is a man who works as a maintenance worker at the Rydges Hotel managed isolation facility in Auckland, who has not had any routine contact with guests.

“His partial genome sequencing results indicate his case is not linked to the community cluster,” the Ministry of Health said in a statement.

The man returned a positive result for Covid-19 on August 16, with symptom onset on August 11, the ministry said.

“He was transferred to Jet Park Hotel quarantine facility on Monday, August 17. It has taken till this morning for genomic sequencing results to confirm the origin of the case.”

Dr Bloonfield said the maintenance worker could have contracted Covid-19 from a returnee from the USA.

"Genome sequencing shows a returnee from the USA, with the same sequence as the man, was at the Rydges Hotel from July 28 to July 31 before they returned a Day 3 positive test and was immediately moved to the Jet Park quarantine facility on July 31," the ministry says.

In total there are 1,293 confirmed cases in New Zealand and one previously reported probable case is now re-classified as under investigation, Dr Bloomfield said