New Zealand

Health officials await test results from latest case in NZ

February 7, 2021 11:06 am

Health officials are awaiting the results of more tests to piece together when and how the latest COVID-19 case got the virus.

The person tested positive on their fifth day of self-isolation at home in Hamilton, after returning three negative tests during their 14 days’ managed isolation at Auckland’s Pullman Hotel.

It is the fifth case to be linked to the hotel and investigations are continuing.

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Since late January, everyone who has completed managed isolation at the Pullman has been required to self-isolate at home for a further five days and be re-tested.

It is not yet known whether the person has one of the more infectious variants of the virus, or whether the infection is linked to the earlier cases.

Yesterday, Director of Public Health Caroline McElnay said genome sequencing would provide further information about that.

She said there was still a chance it could be a historical infection.

More details would be released as soon as they were available, McElnay said.

Health officials have emphasised that the public health risk from the latest case is low, because they have been in self-isolation at home.

Both of the person’s close contacts have tested negative.