Pasifika and Māori were also "hit especially hard" in the months-long Auckland lockdown of 2021, the Commission of Inquiry into the Covid response says. Photo: www.covid19lessons.royalcommission.nz
The first part of New Zealand's Commission of Inquiry into the Covid response says a disproportionate share of the health burden fell on Pacific peoples and Māori.
"Pacific people were always likely to be one of the groups worst-affected by the pandemic," the more than 700-page report said.
It touched on multiple other reports from government agencies showing disproportionate impacts on the Pasifika community, including socially, economically, mentally and physically, and which "became notably disproportionate in mid- to late-2021 with the Delta outbreak in Auckland and slower vaccine rollout for Pacific people".
One area of concern was the tracing app.
An academic study of barriers to digital contact tracing found privacy was a common concern.
A Pacific community participant noted some don't have permanent residency.
"[They] weren't comfortable in disclosing or downloading anything like that as much as they wanted to, because they're scared for their immigration status."
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Pasifika and Māori were also "hit especially hard" in the months-long Auckland lockdown of 2021.
"They were more likely to live in overcrowded housing and work in essential industries (including MIQ [managed isolation]) and they had lower vaccination rates than other groups.
"The decision to keep Auckland locked down until all population groups had adequate vaccination coverage was laudable in intent, but the costs (individual, social, economic, educational) were high and they were borne by all Aucklanders and some in neighbouring regions."
The report also said the decision to protect Pacific communities and Māori - who were at greater risk from the Delta variant - was a key factor in the decision to maintain the long Auckland lockdown.
"However, leaders were reluctant to make this reasoning public in case of a public backlash against these communities. But deciding not to share the reasons behind such decisions came at a cost.
"COVID-19 showed us that governments need to be willing to share information with the public, however difficult or uncomfortable, in order to retain their trust in government, public institutions and the response."
This first phase of the inquiry, set up by the previous Labour government, had sought lessons from the Covid-19 response between February 2020 and October 2022.
There are 39 recommendations, including developing an all-of-government response structure that can be quickly stood up in a pandemic and establishing processes and accountability mechanisms to protect democratic and human rights during a pandemic response.
A response from a group of health professors - including professor of public health at University of Otago, Michael Baker, and associate dean of Pacific at the University of Auckland Collin Tukuitonga, said the rising threat of epidemics and pandemics adds urgency for the government to act on the recommendations.
"We have the plan; now all we need is a rapid government response, proactive leadership and anticipatory decision-making to give New Zealand the pandemic preparedness it urgently needs."
New Zealand prime minister Christopher Luxon said the government would take time to digest the report.
Labour leader Chris Hipkins, who was heavily involved in the Covid-19 response, said the Royal Commission report will help prepare for the next pandemic.
He said it was an incredibly challenging time, and nothing will ever compensate those unable to be present for the birth of a child or death of a relative.
He said the decisions made were based on the information available at the time.
You can read the full report here.
Covid vaccine
The rollout of the vaccine was also problematic - "fall[ing] short of delivering equitable outcomes for Pacific peoples", the report said.
"It is a human right to refuse medical treatment such as vaccination, and not all people will be willing or feel able to be vaccinated. There will therefore be variation in vaccine uptake across the population, due in part to differences in people's preferences and beliefs. This variation is not regarded as an inequality if it reflects genuine choice based on sound information.
"However, vaccine coverage is also impacted by factors other than personal or whānau choice - including geographical barriers, lack of cultural alignment between providers and those receiving vaccines, and historical breaches of trust. It is the inquiry's view that lower vaccine coverage among Māori and Pacific peoples is primarily due to these broader factors.
"For example, while lower coverage in Māori partly reflected higher vaccine hesitancy in Māori communities, this was itself driven by delays in bringing Māori providers into the rollout, greater exposure to misinformation and disinformation, and higher mistrust of government.
"The inquiry therefore regards lower vaccine coverage in Māori and Pacific peoples as an inequality."
The report said opportunities were missed when it came to getting the population vaccinated, despite the "evident effort" that went into the vaccine rollout, and the high rates of coverage it had achieved by late 2021.
"With hindsight, opportunities to ensure more equitable vaccination uptake were missed by not involving Māori, Pacific and community-based providers earlier, in parallel to the main vaccination programme.
"Once Māori, Pacific and other community-based providers were brought into the vaccine rollout, they were highly effective in supporting vaccine uptake within their communities.
"Faster vaccine rollout and uptake among Māori and Pacific people would have resulted in fewer hospitalisations and deaths during the Auckland Delta outbreak and likely shortened the final Auckland lockdown."
