Document 2
COVID-19: Elimination strategy
for Aotearoa New Zealand
Last updated 8 May 2020
Summary
Our elimination strategy is a sustained approach to keep it out, find it and stamp it out. We do this
through:
•
controlling entry at the border
•
disease surveil ance
•
physical distancing and hygiene measures
•
testing for and tracing all potential cases
•
isolating cases and their close contacts
•
broader public health controls depending on the alert level we are in.
1. The Government's overall public health strategy in respect of the COVID-19 pandemic
affecting New Zealand is
elimination. That is, to apply a range of control measures in order
to stop the transmission of COVID-19 in Aotearoa New Zealand.
2. Elimination does not mean eradicating the virus permanently from New Zealand; rather it is
being confident we have eliminated chains of transmission in our community for at least 28
days and can effectively contain any future imported cases from overseas.
3. It is accepted that this approach wil be needed in the long term ie, for many months or longer,
depending on the emerging epidemiology and evidence around the disease and its
management and progress with developing safe and effective treatments and/or vaccines.
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Pillars of the strategy
4.
Border controls are a key tool for stopping the introduction and spread of new cases from
overseas. Al people entering New Zealand are currently isolated in a government-controlled
Released
facility for at least 14 days on arrival, ensuring no new COVID-19 infections are introduced
into the wider population. We anticipate border controls being progressively relaxed as it
becomes safe to do so, for example, if we are confident certain countries eg, Australia, have
low levels of community transmission. Further work wil be needed to determine criteria for
this.
5.
Robust case detection and surveil ance al ows us to identify new cases quickly and take
appropriate action. The surveil ance plan for COVID-19 currently includes testing of anyone
with respiratory symptoms, and sentinel testing in the wider population as part of broader
surveil ance measures to provide assurance that we are not missing cases. The latter wil
emphasise testing for Māori and Pacific populations, as they are likely to be disproportionately
affected by a widespread outbreak. Access to testing must be easy and equity focussed.
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Targeted population-based testing wil also be employed especially in institutional settings
along with seroprevalence surveys in the future. A range of intelligence sources wil assist in
the early identification of emerging clusters.
6.
Effective contact tracing and quarantine is an essential part of control ing transmission of
the virus. Successful contact tracing means 80 percent of contacts of a person who has a
positive COVID-19 test are traced and quarantined within four days of exposure to the case,
to prevent onward transmission. Public health units, which regularly fol ow-up cases and
identify contacts and clusters, have been funded to enhance their ability to do so. A National
Close Contact Service and National Contact Tracing Technology Solution have been
developed within the Ministry of Health to support contract tracing nationally. Additional
technology platforms are also in development to further enhance contact tracing.
7.
Strong community support of control measures. The most important measures to restrict
the spread wil remain physical distancing, good hygiene, staying home if sick and effective
use of PPE when required. These "voluntary" measures are fundamental to the overall
response and a high level of compliance is needed to avoid having to go back up alert levels
in the future. Survey data shows continuing very high public support for the government's
strategy and there have been only a relatively small number of incidents of non-compliance to
date. Ensuring ongoing public support for these measures is essential through clear
communication and community building initiatives across a range of different age, ethnic and
social groups. Confidence in the workplace and especially healthcare settings is enhanced by
the appropriate use of PPE.
End game
8. The aim of the elimination strategy is to stop community transmission of COVID-19 in New
Zealand. This includes preventing onward transmission from cases that might arrive in New
Zealand from overseas. Until we have effective treatments or a vaccine to support this
strategy, we wil rely on the pil ars above and adjust our approach as more information on the
disease becomes available.
9. The Ministry is working with other agencies to ensure New Zealand has access to an effective
vaccine as soon as possible (likely to be at least 12-18 months). A vaccine strategy wil likely
be built on engagement with key researchers and exploring manufacturing capability as well
as successful engagement with global supply chains. A successful mass immunisation
programme wil be required before relevant controls can be relaxed.
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Full strategy
Released
Read the elimination strategy for Aotearoa New Zealand for more detail.
•
COVID-19: Elimination strategy for Aotearoa New Zealand - Overview (Word, 566 KB)
•
COVID-19: Elimination strategy for Aotearoa New Zealand - Overview (PDF, 492 KB)
•
COVID-19: Elimination strategy for Aotearoa New Zealand - Summary (PDF, 161 KB)
Related reading
Document 2
• Princeton University -
Captaining a Team of 5 Mil ion: New Zealand Beats Back COVID-19, March –
June 2020
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Released
Document Outline
