Photo: NZ HeraldThere are 49 new Covid-19 cases today in the community and MIQ today. There are four new border cases of Omicron, bringing the total in New Zealand to eight. Of the 39 new community cases, 25 are in Auckland, 11 are in the Bay of Plenty, two are in Lakes and one is in Taranaki. "We are carrying out whole genome sequencing on all new border cases of Covid-19 to rapidly identify any new cases of the Omicron variant," the Ministry of Health said. "Our health and MIQ teams around the country have been planning for Omicron cases at the border and will continue to manage all arrivals cautiously."

Source: Otago Daily Times December 18, 2021 12:40 UTC