On the fourth anniversary of New Zealand’s first COVID case it’s clear this is not a normal pandemic. Despite fatigue and indifference, New Zealand must heed the evidence and improve its response.
Australia is in the middle of its fifth Omicron wave, which has been brewing since February. But it’s been slow and drawn out and the health impacts are very different to earlier waves.
People can get infections sooner and we now have a mix of variants in the population. Reinfections will likely become more common and the infection rate will rise.
Your COVID infection may not seem any more severe the second or third time around. But it looks like your risks of other health problems increase with each infection.
As New Zealand emerges from its Omicron wave, increasing hybrid immunity and access to antivirals mean it’s time to shift the focus of COVID management.
Case numbers are falling in all age groups, including over-70s. This is good news as case rates in older people have been a key driver of the steep rise in hospitalisations and deaths in this wave.
They’ve stopped short of mandates, but authorities and experts are strongly suggesting it’s time to cover our mouths and noses again to prevent COVID infection. This time, reach for a respirator.
A combination of seasonal factors, under-diagnosis and under-reporting could explain why rates of COVID hospitalisation and death are rising faster than cases.
If our immunity from COVID vaccines is waning, then wearing a mask to prevent infection is even more valuable. But not many people seem to be thinking that way when they’re out and about.
Instead of minimizing current or future waves of COVID-19, we need strategies to deal with new variants efficiently. Only then can we live with the virus in a healthy way.
Michael Plank, University of Canterbury; Dion O'Neale, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau, dan Emily Harvey, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
Vaccine passes have outlived their usefulness, at least for now. But as New Zealand’s Omicron wave begins to subside, other public health measures remain vitally important.
The latest addition to the omicron lineage has been making waves in Europe. Whether it will do the same in the U.S. depends on rates of vaccination and prior infection.
David Welch, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau dan Nigel French, Massey University
As Omicron cases soar in New Zealand, most people can still avoid getting infected. Even if you share a household with an infected person, catching the virus is not at all inevitable.