Almost half of the women sought after a hepatitis C scare have been found and referred for testing, says the Health Ministry.
The ministry has been searching for 55 New Zealand women who may have contracted the disease at a medical clinic in Australia.
The women were among 3500 patients who may have been deliberately infected at a Melbourne abortion centre, the Croydon Day Surgery, between January 2006 and December 2009.
Ministry deputy director of public health Fran McGrath says it has been notified by the Victorian Department of Health that 26 of the New Zealand women have been contacted and referred for testing in New Zealand.
