New case numbers have gone back down today, with the Ministry of Health reporting 98 new community cases of Covid-19.
Some 50 of the new cases are linked to the outbreak and 48 remain unlinked with investigations ongoing.
The outbreak total is now at 9,266.
Of the new cases, 74 are in Auckland, 10 in Waikato, eight in the Bay of Plenty, one in Taranaki, and five in Nelson.
No new cases have been detected in Lakes, Hawke’s Bay, MidCentral, Whanganui or Canterbury.
Two cases have been found in Kaitaia in Northland but will be added to tomorrow's tally. Case interviews are underway and links to extended whānau in the area are being investigated. Anyone who visited Carrington Estate Karikari Peninsula on Saturday, November 20, and who became unwell subsequently is encouraged to get tested, even if they no longer have symptoms, the ministry says.
Of Waikato's 10 new cases, three are in Te Kūiti, two in Ōtorohanga, two in Huntly, two in Tokoroa and one in Hamilton. One of today’s cases has been formally linked to previous cases with the remainder under investigation to confirm links.
In the Bay of Plenty, all of the new cases are in Tauranga, all are household contacts of previously confirmed cases and some were already in isolation. Bay of Plenty District Health Board is finalising details for additional testing in the region and updated locations and times will be available on the Healthpoint website.
Ministry of Health vaccination numbers undercounts the vaccine eligible Māori population by 45,000. Based on that number:
78.1% of Māori have received at least one dose of the vaccine compared to 90.3% of the national eligible population, a gap of 12.2%.
66.5% of Māori are fully vaccinated compared to 84.9% of the national eligible population.
Regarding the new case in Taranaki, the case is a household contact of a current case and has been in isolation since last week. This case is based in New Plymouth.
In Nelson four cases were officially added to today's tally. One is a new case linked to a known school exposure event.
In hospitalisations, 66 people are now in hospital with Covid-19. including one still being assessed. There are 14 in North shore, 25 in Auckland, 22 in Middlemore, two in Waikato, and one each in Tauranga and Nelson hospitals. Seven people are in ICU, with two people in Auckland, three in Middlemore, and one each in North Shore and Waikato hospitals.
In Auckland, the ministry says health and welfare providers are supporting 3,200 people to isolate at home, including 843 cases. Some 109 cases are isolating at home in Waikato.
Vaccine update
The ministry says Southern has become the fifth DHB in New Zealand to be 90% fully vaccinated, reaching this key milestone early this morning.
There were 24,913 total vaccine doses administered yesterday, including 4,571 first doses and 10,652 second doses. To date, 93% of eligible people in New Zealand have had their first dose and 88% are fully vaccinated.
For eligible Māori, 483,519 first doses have been administered (85%); 412,515 Māori are fully vaccinated (72%).
However, the Ministry of Health statistics in this area are contested by health researcher Dr Rawiri Taonui, who argues that a study three years ago found the Health Service User Index (HSU), which the Ministry of Heath uses to calculate vaccination numbers undercounts the Māori population by 21%.
Based on his count, 78.1% of Māori have received at least one dose of the vaccine compared with 90.3% of the national eligible population, a gap of 12.2%.And 66.5% of Māori are fully vaccinated compared with 84.9% of the national eligible population.