New Zealand will relax the measures this week despite the threat of Omicron

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said today that her country would move towards a system of coexistence with the COVID-19 virus later in the week, despite the new Omicron variant posing a new global health threat.

There are no new cases of the Omicron variant in New Zealand at this stage, but the evolving global situation shows why a careful border approach is needed, she said.

“Omicron reminds us that the danger is still present at our borders,” Ardern told a news conference.

New Zealand is enforcing some of the world’s toughest border controls and plans to keep its borders closed to most foreign travelers for a further five months.

Ardern said a lot of evidence needed to be gathered to document the effects of the Omicron variant.

“It may affect our vaccines, but it may not. It may have more severe symptoms or it may be milder than Delta; we just don’t know,” Arden said.

New Zealand Director-General for Health Ashley Bloomfield said authorities were investigating whether more needed to be done at the border to keep Omicron away.

“We are really trying to keep (Omicron) away while we learn more about her,” he told reporters during a news conference.

SOURCE: AMPE