Two COVID-19 vaccine doses no longer means you're fully vaccinated against Omicron and getting the booster dose now means you're up to date, Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield says.
Getting three vaccine doses has been proven to give more protection against Omicron, as well as lowering the chances of needing hospital care and dying from the virus.
Dr Bloomfield says the most important thing anyone can do is "make sure they are vaxxed to the max".
"That means getting a booster if you are 18 or over and we're changing our language around this. Previously we talked about fully vaccinated being two doses and the booster dose on top of that," he told reporters on Tuesday.
"Really what we should be talking about is being up to date with vaccinations, and it's quite clear now for Omicron that being up to date means having three doses."
There are currently about 950,000 New Zealanders who are eligible for their booster but are yet to get it.
Dr Bloomfield says figures from hospitals in the Northern Region - which includes Northland and the three district health boards in Auckland - from March 8 show that just 16 percent of people admitted specifically for COVID in the preceding two weeks had received their booster more than a fortnight ago.
Also, just one person was in ICU who had got their booster more than two weeks before March 8.
Dr Bloomfield says even though a small number of Kiwis haven't got vaccinated, it's clear that a booster protects them from being hospitalised and dying.
"You need three doses of the vaccine to gain protection against Omicron. That third dose could be life-saving for you or a whanau member or a friend, so please, if you haven't already, go and get boosted," he says.
A total 72.8 percent of eligible New Zealanders - or just over 2.5 million people - have had their booster so far.
