5. Question No. 5—COVID-19 ResponseSARAH PALLETT (Labour—Ilam) to the Minister for COVID-19 ResponseQuestion No. 5—COVID-19 Response5. SARAH PALLETT (Labour—Ilam) to the Minister for COVID-19 Response: What recent announcements has the Government made in response to the Omicron outbreak?Hon CHRIS HIPKINS (Minister for COVID-19 Response): Yesterday Cabinet decided that New Zealand will move to phase 2 of our Omicron plan from 11.59 p.m. tonight. We've seen Omicron cases grow sharply across the globe and while its trajectory has been slowed by our border measures and our strong public health measures here in New Zealand—including the traffic light protections and the roll-out of boosters—we are now seeing the increase in numbers that we were ultimately expecting. It's important to remember that this is what we have planned for. It means that we can move to a phase where we are focusing on greater self-management of most New Zealanders who contract COVID-19 and we're shifting our systems to focus on those who are likely to get seriously unwell those who may need more help and to preserve our hospitals for those who need them.Sarah Pallett: What are the key changes in phase 2?Hon CHRIS HIPKINS: The first change is that the period of self-isolation for people who test positive for COVID-19 will reduce from 14 days to 10 days. The period of self-isolation also reduces for their household contacts meaning 10 days for them as well. That's a significant change and it helps to ensure that household members only isolate for the period of time of their family member's 10 days of recovery unless of course they contract COVID-19 themselves. The period of self-isolation for close contacts outside of the household reduces from 10 days to seven days. The other thing that people will notice at phase 2 is the greater use of digitisation and automation to speed up interactions for people with COVID-19. For example at the start of self-isolation a case will fill in an online form for themselves and for their household contacts that will help the health service to work out what support they need. This will also require cases to provide their likely close contacts. Close contacts will receive a text message notification and they will then need to isolate for seven days and have a test on day five. This system will be much more automated and digitised than it has been previously but we will have alternatives in place for those who aren't able to connect digitally.Sarah Pallett: How will phase 2 make it easier for businesses and services to continue operating in the face of increased cases and exposures?Hon CHRIS HIPKINS: At phase 2 the Close Contact Exemption Scheme will begin. Overseas we've seen that large-scale spread of Omicron disrupts supply chains and the ability of critical services to keep functioning at 100 percent. Businesses have already been getting themselves ready by assessing themselves against the criteria needed to join the scheme. We've had a total of 5620 register for it so far. Once a business is signed up to the scheme an employee who is a close contact without symptoms will be able to go to a provider such as their local community vaccination clinic to secure a pack of 10 rapid antigen tests. In some cases rapid antigen tests are being supplied directly to some of the larger scale critical workforces. We've secured enough rapid antigen tests to deal with our immediate needs with 7.2 million currently in the country and more arriving every week.Chris Bishop: In relation to what he's just said around the development of a digitised and automated framework for the recording of rapid antigen test results has Cabinet authorised the development of that system and if so when did it do so?Hon CHRIS HIPKINS: No Cabinet hasn't specifically authorised that; that's something the Ministry of Health have been doing as part of their preparations.Sarah Pallett: What else can people do to prepare themselves and their households against the spread of Omicron?Hon CHRIS HIPKINS: Knowing where the virus is remains critically important as we continue in phase 2 to minimise the spread and the disruption to our workforce and to our economy. So as always if people have COVID-19 symptoms or they've been in touch with someone who has tested positive we ask them to isolate immediately and get a test. I'd also encourage everyone to be developing a self-isolation plan: identify someone for example who can drop off essential items to them if they are at home and required to isolate. Finally I'd reiterate again to everybody that getting their booster doses of the COVID-19 vaccine should be the first thing they do to protect themselves and the vulnerable people who they know from getting the virus. The third dose does clearly make a difference when it comes to dealing with Omicron.