New Zealand currently does not allow medically vulnerable people access to the antiviral medication Paxlovid unless they have three pre existing condtions.  For example, these people would not qualify:
*diabetes (type 1 or 2) and asthma
*heart disease and asthma/bronchitis (they count two lung conditions as one)
*bronchiolitis and MS
*long covid and heart disease

Many of us with pre existing conditions have already had to deal with a covid infection that has greatly exacerbated our conditions, and reinfection could lead to much worse disability or worse. We simply must avoid reinfection, but for many, it's impossible to avoid coming in contact with covid either through work or through children at school etc, especially now that protections such as masking have been lifted almost everywhere.

We are asking for the eligibilty of Paxlovid to be widened so that medically vulnerable people with ONE pre existing condtion, including Long Covid, be included in the list of eligibility for Paxlovid.