New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says the country has "currently" eliminated the coronavirus.
During a briefing on COVID-19 in Wellington on Monday, Ardern confirmed that the country would be easing the lockdown over the coming days and weeks.
"There is no widespread undetected community transmission in New Zealand. We have won that battle," Ardern revealed. "But we must remain vigilant if we are to keep it that way." When she was asked if the virus had been eliminated, she said "currently." New cases in New Zealand have been on a downward trend since April 5, and on Sunday it was confirmed there had been no new cases for the first time in a number of weeks. However, five cases were reported on Monday, bringing the total to 1,469 cases and 19 deaths.
Ashley Bloomfield, New Zealand's director-general of health, added that the smaller number of new cases "does give us confidence that we have achieved our goal of elimination." Both Ardern and Bloomfield stress that in declaring the "elimination" of the virus, it does not mean there would be no new cases. The numbers would be manageable, though, thanks to the help of contact tracing, which Ardern said has been scaled up "significantly."
The COVID-19 alert level in New Zealand has been downgraded to level 3, which means that a lot of businesses in the country are allowed to reopen. Any business or profession that requires "face-to-face contact" will remain closed for the time being. "Your business must be contactless. Your customers customers can pay online, over the phone or in a contactless way," Ardern confirmed. "Delivery or pickup must also be contactless." Grocery stores, gas stations, and pharmacies are exempt from this requirement.
Anyone returning to work should still maintain one mete of social distancing, but anyone who can work from home is advised to do so. "COVID-19 has spread in workplaces, so the quid pro quo of being able to open is doing it in a way that doesn't spread the virus," she said.
