New Zealand ends most Covid restrictions as pandemic worry eases

New Zealand scrapped disguise wearing rules and vaccine mandates connected Monday, bringing an extremity to immoderate of the toughest Covid-19 pandemic rules successful the satellite astir 2 years aft they were enactment successful place.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said successful a play quality league that it was clip to safely crook the leafage connected the country's Covid-19 absorption and unrecorded without the bonzer measures it antecedently used.

"Finally, alternatively than feeling that Covid dictates what happens to us, our lives, and our futures, we instrumentality backmost control," Ardern said.

"For the archetypal clip successful 2 years we tin attack summertime with the overmuch needed certainty New Zealanders and concern need, helping to thrust greater economical enactment captious to our economical recovery," she added.

All disguise wearing requirements were removed, but successful healthcare and aged attraction facilities. Only Covid-19 affirmative individuals volition beryllium required to isolate for 7 days, portion household contacts nary longer request to, the authorities said successful a statement.

All authorities vaccine mandates volition besides beryllium scrapped connected Sept. 26, Ardern said, adding that employers volition present determine whether oregon not they necessitate their workforce to beryllium vaccinated.

The authorities volition besides region each vaccination requirements for incoming travelers and aerial crew.

New Zealand's swift effect to the pandemic, pugnacious pandemic rules, and its geographic isolation kept it mostly escaped from the microorganism until the extremity of past year.

The authorities dropped its zero-Covid argumentation this twelvemonth erstwhile the colonisation was mostly vaccinated. Since past the microorganism has been allowed to spread. There has been 1,950 deaths and astir 1.7 cardinal confirmed Covid-19 cases.