COVID-19: New Zealand Offers Free Masks, Rapid Tests

New Zealand has said it will offer free masks and rapid tests as it steps up efforts to tackle a new wave of coronavirus in the country.

The country's government says new initiatives are designed to reduce pressure on hospitals, clinics and the people who work there.

Minister for COVID-19 Response Dr Ayesha Verrall on Thursday noted a significant increase in cases of the virus in the past two weeks.

Dr Verrall said in a statement; “There’s no question the combination of a spike in COVID-19 cases and hospitalisations, the worst flu season in recent memory and corresponding staff absences are putting health workers and the whole health system under extreme pressure.

“Our modelling suggests we’re at the beginning of a second Omicron wave that could be bigger than the first, with the more transmissible BA.5 variant becoming the dominant strain in the community.”

Nearly 70,000 people across New Zealand are currently known to have COVID-19, and 765 patients are in hospitals with the disease.

The country recorded 11,382 new cases of the coronavirus on Thursday.

To help curb the spread of the disease, the government would make masks and rapid tests available for free, and expand access to antiviral medication for those at greatest risk of the disease.