Dr Guy Hatchard: A Message from New Zealand for the World

There are so many new findings surfacing on pandemic effects, and some old chestnuts, that it is sometimes difficult to choose what to write about.

For example, excess deaths in New Zealand continue high. OECD figures show that counting 2023 and the first 16 weeks of 2024, mortality is 6,300 deaths above the previous trend, up 15%. 2024 is up 14% at 1300 deaths that is 81 deaths every week in our small country above the historical trend. Growth in population is entirely unable on its own to explain these alarming figures. New Zealand is not alone, highly vaccinated countries share this trend.