A mobile testing station set up in Christchurch. Finding new cases, and rapidly tracing their contacts, will be helpful in getting the level of infection down to zero.

A review into the Ministry of Health's distribution of face masks and other protective equipment will be launched by the Auditor-General.

Healthcare workers confronting coronavirus on the frontline have for weeks raised issues with the amount of personal protective equipment (PPE) available to them, despite the director-general of health Dr Ashley Bloomfield routinely saying there was ample supply.

The ministry has in recent weeks nationalised the distribution of PPE across district health boards, and the Government on Saturday announced that $200 million would be spent on more supplies.

On Tuesday, Auditor-General John Ryan said he had agreed with the ministry to independently review the management of PPE during the response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

ALDEN WILLIAMS/STUFF A healthcare worker in PPE at a community coronavirus testing station at Pak 'n Save on Moorhouse Avenue, Auckland.

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"We will assess the controls over procurement, distribution to district health boards and others, and controls over the stock levels," Ryan said, in a statement.

"The ministry has needed to move quickly to address the current needs. In particular, it has needed to set up new approaches to national reserves and stock levels, ordering, freight management, distribution, and advice on the appropriate use of PPE."

The government's auditors would not physically inspect PPE stocks, and would not evaluate the ministry's guidance to healthcare workers on when to use PPE.

The Auditor-General will make recommendations in a report that should be completed in four weeks, and will be publicly released.

Bloomfield on Tuesday confirmed the ministry was approached by the Auditor-General who sought the review, and he agreed.

"I'm very open to scrutiny and review on what we have done, and any feedback on how that could be done better," he said.

"There is very good distribution of PPE. If any issues arise, then those are looked into. That doesn't mean on any one day, a DHB will be able to provide all the PPE that a certain provider thinks they need on that day - but that also doesn't mean there's a problem with the system."

Public Service Association assistant national secretary Melissa Woolley said the union "cautiously" welcomed the PPE review.

"We have repeatedly been promised PPE. Our members have repeatedly been told the DHBs and the Ministry of Health will keep them safe. These promises have repeatedly been broken.

"At least 128 health workers have been infected with Covid-19 so far, and we know for a fact that thousands of our members are working without reliable access to PPE," she said.

On Saturday, Health Minister David Clark announced support for the health response would be stepped up and $200m would go towards securing an ongoing supply of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for health staff and essential workers.

He said about $140m worth of orders had already been placed.

The move was a contingency plan of sorts as New Zealand faces still competition from around the world for PPE and supplies to protect against Covid-19.

"We had good stocks initially an now as it is used more and more widely, we wanted to make sure we had adequate stocks into the future when we are in an environment where it is getting harder to source PPE around the world," Clark told Stuff.