COVID Vaccinations Were ‘Not Compulsory’: NZ PM Says Everyone Had a Choice

New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins speaks to media during a visit to the Memorial Water Treatment Plant in Greytown, New Zealand, on April 13, 2023. Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images

New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has denied that Kiwis were forced to get a COVID-19 vaccination, saying everyone had made their own choice on the matter.

As of Dec. 14 2022, New Zealand had recorded 64,829 adverse reactions, with the New Zealand Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Authority (MedSafe) declaring 3,688 of those were considered serious. The are no reports on how many adverse reactions have occurred in 2023.