NZ scientists argue global Covid-19 elimination is achievable

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2021-07-16 11:00

New Zealand; International

PHOTO: Manuel/Unsplash

As authorities in England abandon most efforts to control Covid-19, New Zealand academics Sir David Skegg and Professor Phillip Hill say it’s critical for counties to see the difference between eliminating and eradicating Covid-19. While there is no internationally agreed definition for what Covid-19 elimination looks like, they say equating it with “zero Covid” may discourage countries from taking a more ambitious approach to suppressing the virus. They write that elimination could be defined as achieving a situation in which outbreaks of Covid-19 are extinguished eventually, with no continuing widespread transmission.

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conference: BMJ

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Organisation/s: University of Otago

Funder: We have read and understood BMJ policy on declaration of interests and declare that DS is the chair and PH is a member of New Zealand’s Strategic Covid-19 Public Health Advisory Group. DS is also a member of the oversight panel for the Covid-19 Scenarios Project of the International Science Council.

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