Covid-19: 268 new Hawke's Bay cases
Hawke's Bay has 268 new Covid-19 cases and 17 people in hospital.
Nationally, the Ministry of Health said 15 people have died with Covid-19 and another 8435 cases have been detected in the community.
Of the 15 people who have died, one was aged in their 40s, two were in their 60s, one was in their 70s, three were in their 80s and eight were aged over 90.
Four of them were from Canterbury, three each were from the Auckland region and the Southern DHB area, two were from the Wellington region, and one each were from Waikato, Taranaki and Nelson-Marlborough.
Six were men and nine were women.
"This is a very sad time for whānau and friends and our thoughts and condolences are with them. Out of respect, we will be making no further comment on these deaths," the Ministry said.
The latest deaths take the total number of publicly reported deaths of people with Covid-19 to 1079.
Country to stay at Orange Traffic Light Setting
In a statement, Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said the next review would be in late June but for now, the Orange setting remained appropriate.
"While daily cases numbers have flattened nationally, they are again beginning to increase in the Northern region and hospitalisation rates have also increased slightly over the past month," he said.
He said modelling showed there was also likely to be a second wave appearing, and warned that while case numbers for now remained fairly steady the arrival of new strains of cold and flu as winter was nearing were adding to the workloads of already busy hospitals.
"I urge everyone to continue to be cautious and think about the health of others, especially those who are immunocompromised or at higher risk of long-term health impacts from infection. Please also get boosted, if you haven't already."
He said public health measures like isolation, vaccination and mask-wearing continued to be the main defences against Covid-19 and masks would continue to be required in many indoor settings.
At Orange, masks are required on flights, ferries and passenger terminals, public transport and taxis, in retail settings including supermarkets, public venues, healthcare and vet clinics, courts and tribunals, and government-run buildings.
Masks are otherwise encouraged indoors, although they may be removed at eating and drinking venues. Businesses may also require them as a condition of entry.
