Some people are more likely to get very sick if they get COVID-19. You are more likely to be affected if you are over 70 years old or have other health issues like a compromised immune system.
Health problems that make COVID-19 more dangerous include a weak immune system, liver disease, cancer, kidney disease, heart disease and diabetes mellitus, pregnant people or those on immunosuppressant medications.
If you have one of these health problems you need to be extra careful to protect against getting sick, and this includes COVID-19.
If you are not sure if you have one of these health problems you can contact your usual healthcare provider and discuss it with them.
- People who are more likely to get very sick if they get COVID-19 should not go out during alert level 4, even to get food or medicine. You may want to ask someone you trust, like a family member, friend or neighbour, to pick up groceries for you. Remember that if this person is not someone you live with or your essential support worker, you need to stay two metres away from them. Two metres is about the length of a couch or your bed; this means that they cannot come inside your house. You can ask them to leave the groceries at your door for you to collect once they have moved away. Leaving deliveries at the door and not inviting people inside will help keep you safe.