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New Zealand will soon begin a phased reopening to the world, dismantling the hard borders which have kept the country safe from the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic, starting with Kiwis in Australia this month.

The country has been largely adrift from the world for almost two years in a tough-as-nails approach to keeping the virus out.

That will change from February 27, when fully vaccinated Kiwis based in Australia will be allowed to sidestep quarantine, and instead self-isolate on arrival.

Two weeks later, from March 13, Kiwis further abroad will also be able to avoid quarantine, as will skilled workers and working holiday visa holders.

By July, all Australians will be able to enter - subject to the same self-isolation requirements - and in October, the government has pledged borders will "fully reopen to visitors from anywhere in the world, and all visa categories fully reopen".

"It's time to move," Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said in Auckland on Thursday, announcing the changes.

"Now it is time, to move forward together, safely."

As part of the changes, all arrivals will be given three rapid antigen tests at the airport to take home - one for initial use, one for use later in isolation, and another as backup.

"That gives us the best chance of identifying cases that have come across the border," Ms Ardern said.

NZ's border policies have minimised the loss of life during the pandemic, first eliminating COVID-19 in 2020, then delaying the arrival of the Delta and Omicron variants.

However, there have been growing calls to lessen quarantine provisions - known locally as MIQ - as Kiwis seek easier pathways in and out of Aotearoa.

The case of Charlotte Bellis, a pregnant Kiwi journalist working in Afghanistan who found herself unable to navigate MIQ rules to come home to give birth, has reignited calls to ease restrictions.

Beyond Ms Bellis, there are thousands of other trans-Tasman families or Kiwis seeking to travel for myriad reasons.

There is also a legal challenge to the MIQ regime, crowdfunded by lobby group Grounded Kiwis, to go before the High Court this month.

"It's easy to hear the word MIQ and immediately associate it with heartache. There is no question, that for New Zealand, it has been one of the hardest parts of the pandemic," Ms Ardern said.

"The anguish of MIQ has been real, and heart breaking. But the choice to use it, undeniably saved lives."

The government will now downscale MIQ, but keep it in place for high-risk travellers, including the unvaccinated.

A previous plan to reopen borders last month was discarded by Ms Ardern, who cited the need to up vaccination rates in the wake of Omicron.

That has happened. With 93 per cent of those aged 12 or over double-dosed, NZ now boasts jab rates among the highest in the world.

Community transmission of Omicron has been detected over the past fortnight, and case numbers are again rising.

Public health experts and outbreak modellers say the current daily case record - 222 - will be beaten within days, and case numbers will be in the thousands this month.

Those projections are the reason NZ will continue to impose the self-isolation requirement in coming months, as Ms Ardern seeks to avoid an explosion of case numbers similar to Australia's experience over summer.

The country's health system is considerably weaker than Australia's, with fears hospitals and intensive care units could be overrun.

NZ's COVID-19 death toll stands at 53, compared with Australia's 3907.

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Teenagers between the age of 16 and 18 are being encouraged to get their third jab after becoming eligible on Thursday.

Health Minister Greg Hunt says the third jab is integral to being better protected against the Omicron variant as Australia still records tens of thousands of cases each day alongside dozens of deaths.

It comes as Australia's primary vaccine advisory body, ATAGI, considers raising the definition of fully vaccinated to three doses.

"I think it is more likely than not. That's my expectation," Mr Hunt told the Nine Network.

"(But) we want everybody to be boosted in any event."

The health minister has also written to Pfizer to encourage them to go through the process of making booster shots available to younger teens, but a full application is yet to be lodged with Australian regulatory health bodies.

"That's a process that is being considered," Mr Hunt said.

Australia has surpassed 8.4 million booster shots, or just under 70 per cent of those eligible, administering over 200,000 third doses a day.

But a third of people in aged care are yet to receive their boosters despite vaccination teams visiting 99 per cent of all aged care facilities to offer the third dose.

The head of the country's vaccine rollout, Lieutenant-General John Frewen, said teams would be conducting second visits of facilities to vaccinate more aged care residents.

There are also concerns Australia is set to face the dual threat of a fresh Omicron wave and the first major surge of flu cases since the pandemic began in coming months.

That's the assessment of the country's chief medical officer Paul Kelly, who said winter would bring fresh challenges to Australia's COVID-19 response.

While Omicron cases have begun to plateau in several jurisdictions, Professor Kelly on Wednesday told a COVID-19 committee hearing that new outbreaks were likely to hit during the colder months.

"There will be another wave of Omicron, most likely in the winter," he said.

"Every June since 2020 there has been a wave of COVID in Australia and other southern hemisphere countries."

Professor Kelly said the coming winter would also bring with it the additional risk of rising flu cases.

Instances of the flu have largely fallen in Australia since 2020 in the wake of the pandemic, following lockdown measures being enacted during traditional flu seasons in populous states.

However, the chief medical officer said a spike in the flu should be anticipated in 2022.

"There was not a winter surge of the flu last year, and flu in the northern hemisphere is still less than usual, but the flu has not disappeared from the world," Prof Kelly said.

"With two years of no flu, we will probably have (a flu season) and we are prepared for all eventualities."

Prof Kelly said the rollout of flu vaccines would run alongside the rollout of the COVID-19 booster shots in coming months.

There were a further 70 COVID-19 deaths reported on Tuesday, with 27 of those reported in NSW, 25 from Victoria, 16 in Queensland and one in both South Australia and the Northern Territory respectively.

Another 40,090 virus cases were reported nationwide, with Victoria having 14,553, NSW having 11,807 and Queensland detecting 9630 infections.

There were a further 1723 cases in South Australia, 1133 in the Northern Territory, 666 in Tasmania, 549 in the ACT and 29 in Western Australia.

© AAP 2022

Some 370,000 teenagers aged 16 and 17 have become eligible for their third COVID-19 jab.

Health Minister Greg Hunt says the booster will better protect against the Omicron variant as Australia still records tens of thousands of cases each day alongside dozens of deaths.

Australia's primary vaccine advisory body, ATAGI, has recommended the third jab for the those aged over 16, after the Therapeutic Goods Administration approved the Pfizer booster for the younger cohort on January 28.

The body is also considering raising the definition of fully vaccinated to three doses.

"I think it is more likely than not. That's my expectation," Mr Hunt told the Nine Network.

"(But) we want everybody to be boosted in any event."

The health minister has also written to Pfizer to encourage them to go through the process of making booster shots available to younger teens, but a full application is yet to be lodged with Australian regulatory health bodies.

"We are encouraging them to bring that forward ... at the earliest possible opportunity," Mr Hunt told the ABC.

Australia has surpassed 8.4 million booster shots, or just under 70 per cent of those eligible, administering over 200,000 third doses a day.

But a third of people in aged care are yet to receive their boosters despite vaccination teams visiting 99 per cent of all aged care facilities to offer the third dose.

It remains unknown how many of the almost 500 aged care residents who have died with COVID-19 this year had received a booster.

Aged Care Services Minister Richard Colbeck was unable to answer at a parliamentary committee on Wednesday, while Mr Hunt said the data was held by the states and yet to be passed to the Commonwealth.

The head of the country's vaccine rollout, Lieutenant-General John Frewen, said teams would be conducting second visits of facilities to vaccinate more aged care residents.

Senator Colbeck tried to play down claims of the aged care sector being in crisis, despite acknowledging the extreme stress and pressure staff and facilities areunder.

ACT Health Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith says there has been a mismatch between what the federal government promised it would do and what was delivered on the ground, further impacting the sector.

"What we've seen throughout is promised support from the Commonwealth just hasn't been available," she told the ABC.

"(They) weren't able to come to the party to provide that additional staffing they had initially indicated they would do."

Ms Stephen-Smith says the Commonwealth ignoring system issues - such as wages in the sector - and instead choosing two $400 bonus payments, shows it isn't taking the situation seriously.

"COVID-19 represents a crisis but more broadly, there is a significant challenge right across the aged care sector in its sustainability and its capacity to particularly care for those most complex aged care patients," she said.

"The aged care services just aren't funded to support those people who have really high and complex needs."

There were a further 70 COVID-19 deaths reported on Wednesday, with 27 in NSW, 25 from Victoria, 16 in Queensland and one in both South Australia and the Northern Territory respectively.

Another 40,090 virus cases were reported nationwide, with Victoria having 14,553, NSW having 11,807 and Queensland detecting 9630 infections.

There were a further 1723 cases in South Australia, 1133 in the Northern Territory, 666 in Tasmania, 549 in the ACT and 29 in Western Australia.

© AAP 2022