Ashley Bloomfield is urging New Zealanders to continue to practice the behaviours such as mask wearing, picked up during the Covid-19 pandemic, as the flu season approaches.
Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, it’s estimated that the flu killed around 500 New Zealanders and hospitalised 2500 every year. Around 35% of of the population were exposed to the virus.
However, for the past two years, the flu has not been detected in the New Zealand community, with the flu cases all being discovered at the border. Six cases were detected in 2020, followed by 14 in 2021.
Now, it’s feared the community could be hard-hit by the flu as its lack of presence here has seen Kiwis' immunity levels drop coupled with people from overseas coming into the country as the border reopens.
Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield told Breakfast there are concerns Kiwis could be hit hard by the flu as winter approaches while the Covid-19 Omicron variant continues to circulate in the community.
He said while the free flu vaccine program has also been extended to reach more vulnerable populations, mask wearing may also play a role in stopping the spread of the illnesses.
“They (masks) don’t just protect you and others from transmitting Covid, but the flu and other viral illnesses," he said.
“The behaviours that we’ve got used to during Covid – staying home if you’re unwell, using masks – these are things that are going to help us get through winter.
“It will put pressure on the system. We will cope but what we want to do is make sure we’re giving all the other care that people need as much as possible through winter too.”
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It comes as Covid-19 restrictions were loosened, with the requirement for vaccine passes to visit hospitality venues and close-contact businesses, such as salons, having been dropped from midnight on April 5.
Despite concerns the loosening of restrictions could lead to a further spike in Covid-19 cases, Bloomfield said vaccine passes “are just one tool in the toolbox”.
“From our perspective, they’ve served us incredibly well. They’ve not only helped protect people, but they did play a role in helping us get that level of vaccination across the population that actually, that 95% double vaccinated gave us a good degree of population immunity and that was fantastic coming into the Omicron outbreak.”
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He said the “key thing now is not so much the vaccine passes; it’s getting as many people boosted as possible”.
“We just need to keep plugging that – vaccine passes or not, mandates or not – if people haven’t been boosted, they should do it, not just to protect themselves but to protect others.”
Bloomfield said while some New Zealanders’ reluctance to get the Covid-19 booster shot is “puzzling”, it has been “seen in just about every other country”.
“There is this drop-off in vaccination with that third booster dose and I just need to emphasise how important it is for us.
"If we want to keep protecting our vulnerable groups, it’s as much a protection for individuals but it really does help us reduce the likelihood of transmitting to other people who may end up in hospital or, indeed, dying from this outbreak.”
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