Māori now make up about half of all cases in the Delta outbreak, despite making up just 16 percent of the population.
Vaccination Centre Sign Photo: RNZ / Angus Dreaver
And for two days in a row, there have been no new cases among Pākehā, something Māori health experts say highlights a disproportionate response.
An analysis by health researcher Dr Rawiri Taonui showed that for 80 days now, Māori have either been the highest or second-highest number of cases, and he told Midday Report Māori are now at about 50 percent total of all cases in the Delta outbreak.
"It's really clear that Māori are seriously disadvantaged and disproportionately represented in the Delta numbers," he said.
"More than half of total cases in Delta, nearly 50 percent of active cases. The rate of hospitalisation for Māori is increasing at double the rate of all other ethnicities, and we're also nearly half of deaths in the Delta outbreak."
Dr Taonui's analysis also found that Pākehā cases are plummeting. On Sunday and Monday, there were no Pākehā cases at all, he said.
Dr Rawiri Taonui. Photo: Supplied
National secretary of the New Zealand Māori Council Peter Fraser said it was clear the pandemic response has been tailored to Pākehā.
That was laid out in an urgent hearing before the Waitangi Tribunal last week, brought by the council.
"If we have a successful programme it needs to be successful for Māori," Fraser said. "We know that Māori have greater co-morbidities and worse health status - we all know that.
"If we have a successful programme for Māori, we end up having a successful programme for everybody."
Both Peter Fraser and Rawiri Taonui said overall it's good that numbers are trending down, and Māori vaccination rates are ticking up - 75 percent are now fully vaccinated.
But they warned the removal of the Auckland border will likely see Māori and Pacific cases rise again.
Taonui said the government's overall strategy is probably right - but the easing is always premature for Māori.
"Auckland going to level 3 led to a sequence of 70 days in a row where Māori were the highest cases. When Auckland went to level 3, step 2, cases went to a 100 a day in the Māori community.
"So that's the real concern with the border opening up."
Associate Health Minister Peeni Henare said the figures were all the more motivation to keep driving up vaccination rates.
But he pushed back when asked whether the numbers mean Māori have been let down.
"I'll continue to push back on this. Since March I've been going around to communities to promote the vaccine and we'll continue to do that. What we are dealing with are decades of inequitable funding for Māori health."
"No cases are acceptable, we're doing our best to vaccinate our people and care for our people who prove positive with Covid."