Wednesday April 20

There are 11,217 cases today.

Due to an IT issue, the Ministry of Health were not able to release today's community case numbers at 1pm. 

There are 547 people in hospitals with Covid-19, with 14 of those people in intensive care or high dependency units.

The Ministry of Health is reporting a further 13 deaths of people with Covid-19 today.

Testing

If you take a RAT you must report the result, positive or negative. This can be done online through My Covid Record, or by calling 0800 222 478 between 8am and 8pm.  

Vaccinations

The Covid-19 Vaccine Independent Safety Monitoring Board met from February 2021 to November 2021 to review and discuss the safety data for the Pfizer vaccine. 

During this time, more than seven million doses were administered and almost 90 percent of the eligible population had two doses. 

Of the 39,973 adverse events after immunisation reported during this time period, 1,593 serious cases were reported to the Centre for Adverse Reactions Monitoring. 

Of the reported adverse events, less than five percent were classified as serious. 

The board considered 18 safety signals - information on a new or known adverse event that may be caused by the vaccine and requires further investigation - which led to 28 recommendations to MedSafe or the Ministry of Health. 

Out of the 18 safety signals for the Pfizer vaccine, only one was confirmed in New Zealand. Myocarditis and pericarditis were identified as very rare adverse reactions to the Pfizer vaccine. 

“The board has been reassured by both the international and New Zealand data presented, that the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine is a very safe vaccine,” a statement on the Ministry of Health’s website said. 

Top Image: Shop front with Covid-19 signage. (File photo) Photo: Getty Images

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