252 new cases of Covid-19, no more deaths

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Tonight an additional 252 cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed, while no more deaths have been reported.

The total number of Covid-19-related deaths in Ireland is now 2,022, following the denotation of one death, according to the Department of Health. The total number of confirmed cases now stands at 70,711.

Of the cases reported today, 65% are under 45 years of age.

There were 88 cases in Dublin, 26 in Cork, 21 in Kilkenny, 16 in Louth and 16 in May, with the remaining 85 spread across 20 other counties.

At 2pm this afternoon, 289 Covid-19 patients were in the hospital, with 33 in the ICU, two more than yesterday’s figure of 31.

There were 11 additional hospitalizations in the past 24 hours.

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At an NPHET briefing tonight, the medical director said that the 14-day Covid-19 incidence rate in Ireland is the fourth lowest in Europe and we have seen a reduction of more than 40% in the last two weeks.

Dr. Tony Holohan said the rate is now 107 per 100,000 residents.

He said that while we have seen a significant reduction in the five-day average number of cases, there is still work to be done as a country to make the number as low as possible.

The number of cases can often be less on a Monday, Dr. Holohan said, and we are still dealing with a five-day average of more than 300 cases per day.

That’s still “a significant number of infections,” he said, adding that if things were to start trending up again, they would “create problems” in a relatively short space of time.

Dr. Holohan said that it has been a long and difficult year for everyone, and that it has been difficult to maintain the high level of behavior that the population has shown throughout the year.

It is understandable that each of us can let our guard down individually and collectively, he said, adding that when we find ourselves in a situation where things are looking up, we can start to let our guard down a bit.

He said that we must be careful to the extent to which we blame each other, and that we must try to support and encourage each other to behave in the most responsible way possible, while accepting that no one will be perfect all the time.

Regarding a vaccine, Dr. Holohan said there has been some “encouraging news” and now we have a “substantial degree of hope.”

He said he and deputy chief medical officer, Dr. Ronan Glynn, attended the first meeting of the task force to discuss vaccination and details of a plan will be finalized in the coming weeks.

Dr Holohan also said that new research from Amárach shows that the population’s level of concern has dropped and is now similar to the levels seen in July.

A third of those surveyed said they believe the worst is yet to come, while 28% believe the worst is over, which NPHET considers “significant,” said Dr. Holohan.

In relation to outbreaks of the virus, Dr. Ronan Glynn said there are currently 121 active open outbreaks in workplaces.

He said that in the past seven days, they were notified of 20 new outbreaks in the workplace and another 20 in the previous seven days.

These shoots have been of “different sizes,” he said.

Dr. Glynn added that a much larger number of outbreaks are typically linked to family homes, while 14 open outbreaks are linked to sports activity or fitness, although it is not known whether they are linked to elite sports.

He said there are 63 open outbreaks in the travel community, with nine cases reported last week.

There have been 52 hospitalizations within the Traveler community, he said, and to date there have been no deaths.

Meanwhile, the three leaders of the coalition party will meet tonight to discuss how the country will exit the Level 5 restrictions next week.

The NPHET meeting was moved forward from Thursday to Wednesday, and your advice will be incorporated into the exit plan.

Taoiseach Micheál Martin has said that an announcement will be made on Thursday or Friday.

The expectation is that the country will go to ‘level three more’ next week starting at midnight on Tuesday, December 1.

Additional reporting by Helen Donohue and Mary Calpin



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