Pursuant to clause 24 of the COVID-19 Public Health Response (Alert Level Requirements) Order (No 9) 2021 (“Order”), the Director-General of Health may exempt a class of persons, businesses, services, or goods (or any person, business, service, or goods) from the application of any provision of the Order or from the requirement to comply with any provision of the Order.

Being satisfied that the exemption is necessary or desirable to promote the purposes of the Act or the purposes of the Order, and the extent of the exemption is not broader than is reasonably necessary, I grant an exemption:

1. to funeral homes to hold viewings of deceased persons or tūpāpaku, provided that viewings are conducted in accordance with the Conditions for Holding Viewings set out below;
2. to persons who meet the Conditions for Attendance at a Viewing and are:
   1. travelling to or from a viewing that is conducted in accordance with the Conditions for Holding Viewings; or
   2. attending a viewing that is conducted in accordance with the Conditions for Holding Viewings.

Conditions for Holding Viewings

The exemption for funeral homes to hold viewings is subject to the following conditions:

• viewings must be held outside or in a single indoor room within a funeral home or private outside area within the grounds of the funeral home;
• no more than one viewing may take place at a time at a funeral home;
• viewings must be no longer than one hour in duration from the point that attendees enter the premises to the time that the attendees leave the premises;
• all attendees must reside together in a single home or place of residence, or be part of a single shared bubble arrangement as defined in the Order. The funeral director must ensure that attendees at a viewing constitute a single bubble;
• the funeral director holding the viewing must ensure that contact tracing records are kept of all attendees;
• the funeral director must be the only worker in the viewing room or area at the time the viewing occurs;
• the funeral director must have received two injections of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine prior to the date the viewing is held;
• viewings must be booked with the funeral director prior to the viewing;
• the funeral director must meet attendees when the attendees enter the premises, escort them to and from the viewing room or area at the commencement and conclusion of the viewing and ensure that attendees are supervised throughout the viewing;
• the funeral director must wear a mask and maintain good hand hygiene from the time immediately prior to the arrival of attendees until the attendees are escorted from the funeral home;
• the casket and viewing room must be sanitized prior to, and following the conclusion of, the viewing;
• after attendees have left the funeral home, the funeral home must conduct a full clean of the viewing room, toilets, the route to and from the main entrance and any other places or items the attendees were observed to have touched. The funeral director must maintain a record of areas cleaned and the products used;
• the funeral director must inform attendees of the Conditions for Attendance at a Viewing set out below before the viewing is held and take all reasonably practicable steps to ensure that attendees comply with the requirements throughout the viewing; and
• the funeral director must not conduct the viewing if the funeral director has any symptoms of COVID-19, is subject to a section 70 order under the Health Act 1956, or is waiting for a COVID-19 test result.

Conditions for Attendance at a Viewing

The exemption for persons to travel to or attend a viewing is subject to the following conditions:

• Attendees may not attend a viewing with attendees who are not fellow residents or are not part of a shared bubble arrangement;
• All attendees must:
  • wear masks when inside the funeral home premises;
  • maintain physical distancing from the funeral director; and
  • refrain from physical contact with the deceased.
• Attendees must not:
  • be a close contact of a person who has tested positive for COVID-19;
  • have been at any location of interest on a date and time listed on the Ministry of Health’s website, unless they have received a negative day five test;
  • be a household contact or a person who visited a location of interest on a date and time listed on the Ministry of Health’s website, unless they have received a negative day five test;
  • be waiting for a COVID-19 test result (other than a routine surveillance test pursuant to the COVID-19 Public Health Response (Required Testing) Order 2020; or
  • have symptoms of COVID-19.

In this notice, “Attendee” does not include the funeral director conducting the viewing.

Dated this 30th day of August 2021.

Dr ASHLEY BLOOMFIELD, Te Tumu Whakarae mō te Hauora | Director-General of Health.