Small centres are bracing for intense pressure on their health services as visitors flood in over the holiday break.
Covid infection numbers are set to peak as high as one in 20 by the end of the month.
But because hospital admissions usually lag by a couple of weeks, the early New Year threatens to be the real crunch time.
Taupō Hospital emergency doctor and rural health network Hauora Taiwhenua clinical director Jeremy Webber spoke to Charlotte Cook.
