Taranaki Programme Weekly Update
The recent Government announcement updating the COVID-19 Protection Framework included changes in vaccine mandates and vaccination pass requirements.
Vaccine mandates
From April 4, vaccine mandates will be lifted for everyone except health and care workers, prison staff and border workers, although businesses will still be able to have workforce vaccination requirements if they wish.
Health workers are more likely to be exposed to COVID-19, and are also liable to transmit the virus to highly vulnerable patients in their care. Aged care facilities and prisons are also places where vulnerable people may be exposed to large outbreaks. Border and MIQ workers are likely to be the first people in our community to be exposed to new variants of COVID-19 so it is important to minimise their risk of becoming infected and passing the infection on to others.
Now that Omicron is circulating widely in the community, the relative risk to children of contracting COVID-19 at school (compared to other locations) or from school workers (compared to the community) has reduced compared to when the vaccine mandate was originally introduced.
Vaccine mandates may be reinstated in future if required, for example if a more severe variant emerges that needs more stringent public health measures to be put in place.
My Vaccine Pass
My Vaccine Pass was required while the vaccination roll-out was put into action, but with around 95% of the eligible population at least double dosed, it is no longer needed. Businesses will still be able to use the system if they would like to, but from 4 April it won’t be required.
However, people are advised to not delete their MVP from their phones or throw away any hard copies in case vaccine pass requirements are needed once more at some point in the future.
To keep up to date with the situation in Taranaki, like the Taranaki District Health Board Facebook page and check TDHB - COVID-19 regularly for updates. |
