Health boss Dr Ashley Bloomfield thanked everyone who has been tested, but warned Kiwis can't become complacent.
“Don’t let the team down - none of us can afford to do that."
The Ministry of Health this afternoon confirmed there are no new cases of the coronavirus to report in New Zealand.
"It has been 100 days since the last case of Covid-19 was acquired locally from an unknown source."
No additional cases are reported as having recovered, so there were still 23 active cases of Covid-19 in managed isolation facilities, the ministry said.
New Zealand’s number of confirmed cases remained at 1219.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern earlier today said 100 days would be a milestone, but it didn't minimise the risk in any way, given the ongoing pandemic around the world.
"We need to be vigilant."
She said there was a resurgence plan ready to roll out if there was a surge in cases in New Zealand.
On Saturday, laboratories processed 4249 tests, bringing the total number of tests completed to date to 494,481. There were 542 swabs taken in managed isolation and quarantine facilities yesterday, the Ministry of Health said.
"Pop-up testing centres run by District Health Boards continue to be well-attended, with very encouraging numbers of people coming forward to be tested for Covid-19."
On Friday, there were 133 people swabbed over a two-hour period at New World in New Plymouth. The testing centre in Manurewa had 153 people swabbed yesterday, and 326 people were tested yesterday at the pop-up clinic in Christchurch.
Dr Bloomfield thanked every person who had been tested and those doing the testing for playing their part in ensuring communities do not have undetected cases of Covid-19.
“Achieving 100 days without community transmission is a significant milestone, however, as we all know, we can't afford to be complacent," he said today.
“We have seen overseas how quickly the virus can re-emerge and spread in places where it was previously under control, and we need to be prepared to quickly stamp out any future cases in New Zealand.
“Every person in the team of five million has a role to play in this.
“Seek advice from your GP or Healthline on getting a test if you have symptoms of Covid-19 and stay at home if you are unwell. Keep a record of your movements so you can refer to them for contact tracing if required.”
Earlier this week, Dr Bloomfield demonstrated how to correctly use a face mask during a Facebook Live video session, while Health Minister Chris Hipkins warned if the country was ever to return to alert level 2, New Zealanders would be encouraged to wear masks in situations where they couldn't physically distance, such as on public transport.
- ODT Online
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Comments
Yes, it is a team of 5 million, we were the ones who did what was required of us to get here. It cost us a fortune and jobs. So how about asking us what we want when financing of the returnees whilst they are in isolation/quarantine. This debt is already bad enough.
For some people it's all about themselves and money.
The NZ economy looks pretty good, and when you compare it with Australia, the UK and the USA it is impressive.
Short term visitors, foreigners and kiwis who left after the start of the lockdown should be paying the full cost of their quarantine, but shutting other Kiwis out to save you few dollars is over the top. Try to remember, the money spent on quarantine is being injected into the NZ economy, keeping people employed and businesses afloat.
The vast majority of people in Quarantine do not have the virus, they are going through it as a precaution to protect you, not them.
Kiwis don't stop being Kiwis just because they were out of the country when the borders closed. And I don't think any real Kiwi would want to make it harder for them to return.