There are 215 new Covid-19 cases in the community on Tuesday, the Ministry of Health has confirmed.
Of the new cases 196 were in Auckland, 11 in Waikato, four in Northland, one in Bay of Plenty, one in MidCentral - which was reported on Monday but officially added to Tuesday's tally - and two in Lakes District.
There was also one new death to report on Tuesday - a person in their 50s at Auckland City Hospital.
"Our thoughts are with the patient’s whānau and friends at this deeply sad time," the ministry said.
Of the new Northland cases, one is in Whangārei and was already isolating, with the other three in Kaikohe.
All four cases have known links.
In Waikato, six new cases are from Huntly, three are from Kawhia and one each in Te Kuiti and Otorohanga.
Five of the new cases have been linked and the remaining six are under investigation to find a link.
As well, a Waikato community case reported on November 19 has been reclassified as not a case, and a previously reported MIQ case has also been reclassified as not a case.
"An update on a reported visit by a Covid-19 case to a residence in a Retirement Village in Tauranga is that one close contact has been identified and their initial test result is negative," the ministry said.
"This situation continues to be closely managed by the Public Health Unit."
So far, 116 of the new cases are linked to the current Delta outbreak.
The remaining 99 are under investigation to find a link.
The total number of cases in this Delta outbreak is now 7268, of which 2453 have recovered.
There are now 88 people with Covid-19 in hospital, of which two are still being assessed, including six in intensive care or a high dependency unit.
There are 37 at Auckland City Hospital, 29 at Middlemore Hospital, 19 at North Shore Hospital, two in Waikato Hospital and one in Rotorua Hospital.
The average age of people with Covid-19 in hospital is 45.
There are 6450 contacts linked to this outbreak, of which 69 per cent have been contacted and 70 per cent have received at least one test.
As of 12pm on Tuesday, there were 154 locations of interest on the Ministry of Health's website, including two new exposure sites.
On Monday, 24,198 Covid-19 tests were processed, including 12,702 in Auckland.
In total, more than 4.71 million tests for Covid-19 have been processed since the pandemic began.
"The Ministry is aware of reports of individuals concerned about getting tested for Covid-19 due to their immigration status," the ministry said.
"We would like to remind anyone in New Zealand that if you return a positive test, the Ministry and your local public health team will work with you to identify and contact people you have been in close contact with.
"If necessary, information about a positive test result may also be shared with emergency services in your area to help them in their response, but it will not be used for immigration-related or enforcement purposes, as outlined on the Ministry’s website.
"We continue to urge anyone in New Zealand with Covid-19-related symptoms – no matter how mild – to get tested, even if they are vaccinated.
"We also encourage people to take advantage of the weekend to get vaccinated, with many sites available nationwide."
On vaccines, 15,224 jabs were administered across the country on Monday, made up of 4777 first doses and 10,447 second doses.
In total, more than 7.36 million Covid-19 vaccinations have been administered in New Zealand to date.
"To date, 91 per cent of eligible people in New Zealand have had their first dose and 84 per cent are fully vaccinated," the ministry said.
There were also three new border cases, of which one is a historical infection, to report on Tuesday.
The total number of confirmed cases of Covid-19 in New Zealand has now passed 10,000, with 10,025 since the pandemic began.
Tuesday's update comes after there were 205 new community cases on Monday.
The announcement also comes as the Government is also set to release a new tool to help businesses assess whether they should be requiring workers to be vaccinated.
The tool - available from mid-December - builds on guidance and advice from WorkSafe, public health agencies, Business New Zealand and the Council of Trade Unions.
Workers covered by the My Vaccine Pass mandate will need to have their first dose by December 3 and be fully vaccinated by January 17, Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Michael Wood said.
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