New Zealand abandons COVID-Zero. Is hope of elimination over? episode artwork

EPISODE · Oct 12, 2021 · 17 MIN

New Zealand abandons COVID-Zero. Is hope of elimination over?

from This Matters · host Toronto Star

Guest: Alex McKeen, Toronto Star reporter For much of the pandemic, New Zealand has avoided mass outbreaks, a large number of deaths and high case counts, and in doing so has been heralded by COVID-Zero supporters as the poster-child of the strategy to eliminate the virus. But that's all come to an end as New Zealand, like a number of other nations, has all but abandoned the official strategy. The goal now is low rates of transmission, rather than total elimination. The COVID-Zero movement has drawn a number of supporters from epidemiologists and public health experts as well its share of criticism from people who compare the approach to the anti-vax movement. Where does the goal of eliminating COVID spread go now? Is it even possible to achieve? Why is the dream of eliminating COVID spread such a controversial one?

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Oct 12, 2021

Embed this episode

NOW PLAYING

New Zealand abandons COVID-Zero. Is hope of elimination over?

0:00 17:50

No transcript for this episode yet

We transcribe on demand. Request one and we'll notify you when it's ready — usually under 10 minutes.

No similar episodes found.

No similar podcasts found.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is this episode of This Matters?

This episode is 17 minutes long.

When was this This Matters episode published?

This episode was published on October 12, 2021.

Can I download this This Matters episode?

Yes. Use the download control on the episode player to save the publisher-provided media file.
URL copied to clipboard!