HNZ said while there had been no new measles cases over the weekend, it was concerned about several locations of interest identified where people were considered close contacts and were at higher risk of infection.
On Friday, HNZ confirmed two new cases of measles, one in Queenstown and one in Auckland, both linked to known exposures.
The number of known cases nationally now sits at 30, of whom 22 are no longer infectious.
The latest locations of interest in Queenstown relate to last Tuesday: at The Ballarat from 8.05pm-10.30pm; at the Chemist Warehouse from 7.50pm-9pm; at Carters from 2.45pm-4.15pm; and at OPSM in Frankton from 2.10pm-3.40pm.
All people in these areas should quarantine from tomorrow to December 16 and then monitor for symptoms until December 23.
A close exposure was recorded at the emergency department of Dunedin Hospital last Tuesday from 1pm-2.30pm.
Another was recorded at Hikari Teppanyaki in Frankton last Monday from 6pm-8.45pm.
Attendees at those locations or events that occurred on or before November 30 could be at risk of spreading measles to others from today, so these people also need to stay at home and avoid seeing others until they have phoned Healthline and received advice.
Anyone who develops symptoms of measles, such as a runny nose, fever, cough, sore red eyes and a rash starting at the face, should stay home and contact Healthline on 0800611-116, or their usual healthcare provider.
Call ahead before visiting a healthcare provider, as this will allow it to take steps to prevent the illness spreading.
"We also encourage people to check their immunisation status and get their MMR vaccination if they have not already had two documented doses of the vaccine, or can’t show that they’ve had measles before," the HNZ statement said.
"With retailers, events, travel providers and airports all identified as recent locations where people could have been exposed to measles, we continue to urge everyone — especially people travelling or attending busy public places or large events — to protect themselves and others as we head into the busy holiday season.
"Measles can have a long incubation period and is highly contagious, so anyone planning to travel, either internationally or within New Zealand, is strongly encouraged to check their immunisation status and get vaccinated if needed."
Public health specialist Dr Matt Reid said that in the 50 days since October 19 — the first case of this outbreak — 60,808 MMR doses had been delivered as of yesterday, compared with 22,000 in the 50 days before the outbreak.
"Immunisation is the best protection against measles," Dr Reid said.
"The more people who are immune to measles, the better as high community immunisation coverage protects those people in our whānau who can’t be immunised.
"Babies under 12 months of age, people who are pregnant, or people who are immunocompromised cannot be immunised."
— Allied Media
