There are a record 1573 new Covid-19 community cases in New Zealand on Thursday, the Ministry of Health has announced.
Thursday's total is a significant increase from the 1160 new Covid-19 community cases recorded on Wednesday.
The cases are in Northland (31), Auckland (1,140), Waikato (143), Bay of Plenty (29), Lakes (35), Hawke’s Bay (2), MidCentral (3), Whanganui (11), Taranaki (8), Tairāwhiti (8), Wairarapa (30), Capital and Coast (20), Hutt Valley (22), Nelson Marlborough (49), Canterbury (7), and Southern (35).
Sixty-three people are in hospital with the virus, zero of whom are in intensive care or a high dependency unit.
In addition, there are 15 cases to report at the border.
On Wednesday, 40,452 Covid-19 booster doses were administered across the country, bringing the total so far to more than two million doses.
Meanwhile, more than 90 per cent of Māori aged 12 years and over in the Hutt Valley have now been full vaccinated, becoming the fourth DHB area in New Zealand to achieve this milestone.
"The most important step anyone can take to prepare for Omicron is to book their vaccine which is our best defence against the virus," the ministry said.
"Every dose counts and lowers the chances of getting very sick and being hospitalised, so if it’s been three months since your last dose, please book your booster today.
"Since January 22, when the first Omicron case was detected in the community, double vaccinated cases are ten times less likely to require hospitalisation than unvaccinated cases – 4% of unvaccinated cases have required hospitalisation and 0.4% of fully vaccinated cases have required hospitalisation."
There were 32,285 tests carried out in the past 24 hours. The rolling average for tests over the past seven days is 24,175.
The ministry has asked people to seek a test only if they are experiencing cold or flu symptoms, have been identified as a close contact, or have been asked to get tested by a health official.
"We understand that some people will be feeling worried or anxious at this time and will want a test for their own reassurance. However, unnecessary testing will result in long waits at testing centres and could also delay results for those who urgently need them."
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