Omicron lands in New Zealand
Health experts are calling on the New Zealand government to accelerate the booster program after the first case of the Omicron variant was detected in the country.
The Health Ministry said it arrived via an infected person from Germany via Dubai a week ago.
"Whole genome sequencing has detected New Zealand’s first case of the Omicron variant," the Health Ministry said.
"We know how rapidly Omicron has spread globally, so it’s been important to make sure every border case detected undergoes urgent genome sequencing," Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield said.
"We have been doing everything we can to prepare for omicron and to keep it out of the community since the variant was first identified."
About 90% of the eligible population are now double-dosed, but experts say vaccine booster doses must be speeded up.
Dr Fran Priddy, from the research group Vaccine Alliance Aotearoa said two doses don’t offer enough protection from Omicron.
"In lab tests, there’s very severely reduced ability to block Omicron … it’s at least tenfold less than the ability to block Delta," Dr Priddy said.
Priddy and other experts want the government to bring booster shots forward rather than waiting the current six months after the second jab.
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Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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