Public, doctors not impressed by govt rules to curb Covid

Masks and rapid antigen tests will be free to the public, and Covid patients will have greater access to antiviral Covid treatments in the latest move to slow the soaring rise in case numbers. However, the government stopped short of introducing further mask mandates and Covid-19 Response Minister Dr Ayesha Verrall says a move to the red traffic light setting isn't on the cards anytime soon. That's despite many in the sector calling for tougher mask rules, including epidemiologist Michael Baker, who accused the Government of putting politcs ahead of science. Latest government modelling found that if we don't act to reduce transmission, we could see up to 1200 hospitalisations a day, with up to 21,000 daily cases. We sent reporter Leonard Powell out to the Auckland CBD to see what the public made of the announcement Leonard began by asking people if they think New Zealand should move back to alert level red. Leonard then asked whether people thought masks should be mandatory indoors, and free to access. Nathan Rarere spoke with someone on the front lines of the country's battle with Covid-19, Dr Gary Payinda, who is an emergency medical specialist from Whangarei Hospital.