Two cases of isolation at home
South Auckland returnees not first to be exempted from hotel stay
There have been two separate cases since mid-July in which people returning from overseas have been allowed to be in managed isolation at their own home, the Government has confirmed.
Two recently returned people are in managed isolation at their own house in a suburb in South Auckland after they were given a special exemption on medical grounds.
Both tested negative for Covid-19 on day three and will have their day 12 test this weekend.
Everyone coming in from overseas is required to be in managed isolation — usually a hotel — for 14 days.
Last night, a Managed Isolation and Quarantine spokeswoman confirmed the case was the second occasion an exemption from managed isolation had been granted on medical grounds since the exemptions process shifted from the Ministry of Health to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment on July 13.
Forty-two other applications for exemptions on medical grounds were turned down or did not progress.
“In order to be granted an exemption for this reason, there must be serious health conditions present that cannot be adequately addressed in a hotel setting, but that are not necessarily appropriate to manage in a hospital setting.”
Information on whether any exemptions had been granted before July 13 wasn’t immediately available, she said.
The Weekend Herald became aware two people were in managed isolation at home when a neighbour became worried after spotting several security guards outside a property near their house.
Officials wouldn’t say when the pair arrived in New Zealand or from which country they came.
The neighbour said he only spotted the guards outside the house on Thursday.
They told him their presence was
“Covid-related”, alarming him: “I’ve got family that stay just next door to them and I don’t want them catching it.”
On the street yesterday, a member of the public said up to three security guards were stationed outside the house, some wearing masks.
The Managed Isolation and Quarantine spokeswoman said when an exemption was granted, significant measures were taken to protect public health.
“The safety of the community is always the primary concern when considering exemptions, and exemptions are only granted where the public health risk can be strictly managed.
“The exemption system in place allows us to consider people’s very difficult personal circumstances, alongside the need to protect New Zealand from Covid-19,” she said, before asking the public to respect the privacy of those in managed isolation at home.
The news comes after director general of health Dr Ashley Bloomfield said on Facebook yesterday: “What we have put in place since April 9 is that everyone coming across the border, bar a very few exemptions, has to do that 14 days of managed isolation — so not even isolating at home.”
Managed isolation has been under careful scrutiny after a string of breaches at isolation facilities across New Zealand.
In the latest incident late Wednesday, a woman pushed through a fence into the Rotorua Sudima facility but was stopped before entering the building. A 45-yearold woman has been charged with unlawfully being on the property and is due to appear in court next week.
Most incidents have involved returning Kiwis trying to escape from managed isolation, including two in Hamilton last month — a woman and her four children trying to get to Auckland for a funeral and in a separate incident, a man who allegedly broke out to buy alcohol.