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The data released by the Center for Health Protection Surveillance does not support the concerns expressed about the Covid-19 case rate in Co Leitrim.
Yesterday, Co Leitrim was included in a list of counties outside of Dublin where officials are most concerned about Covid-19 trends.
Taoiseach Department Deputy Secretary Liz Canavan said several counties “now show worrying trends” regarding the number of coronavirus cases.
At a government press conference, he said that counties “Louth, Waterford, Limerick, Kildare, Leitrim, Donegal and Offaly now show worrying trends.”
However, the HPSC figures do not indicate that the Covid-19 incidence rate in Co Leitrim is one of the highest in the country, nor do they suggest that the 14-day incidence rate of the disease in Co Leitrim has increased.
According to the HPSC, the 14-day incidence of Covid-19 in Co Leitrim was 34.3 per 100,000 residents at midnight Saturday night, less than half the national average.
That figure is less than 65.5 per 100,000 cases a week earlier, representing a reduction of almost 48%.
It is also 31% lower than the 14-day incidence rate of Leitrim that was reported two weeks ago.
Currently, there are 15 counties in the Republic of Ireland with higher Covid-19 incidence rates than Co Leitrim.
HPSC data shows 48 cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed in Leitrim over the past three weeks.
That total included 16 cases registered three weeks ago, followed by 21 cases two weeks ago, but only 11 cases last week.
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Covid rate stabilizes in Limerick
Meanwhile, the incidence of Covid-19 in Co Limerick has stabilized and reduced since the National Public Health Emergency Team highlighted the county as an area of particular concern more than two weeks ago.
The 14-day incidence rate of Covid-19 in the county was 59.5 cases per 100,000 residents at the time, according to the Center for Health Protection Surveillance.
This increased to 63.1 cases last week, but has since fallen to 51.8. This leaves the Covid-19 rate in Limerick City and County 23% lower than two weeks ago and 27.5% lower than last week.
The experience in Limerick contrasts sharply with Dublin, where the incidence rate of the disease increased from 58.7 to 138 per 100,000 in the past two weeks, an increase of 135%.
This precipitated the decision to move Dublin to threat level three on the Living with Covid-19 roadmap with new social and economic restrictions imposed over the weekend.
Co Limerick is one of five counties where the 14-day incidence of Covid-19 per 100,000 people has decreased over the last week.
The other counties are; Kilkenny, where the rate is down 12.8%; Longford, 28.6% less; Tipperary, 38.8% less; and Leitrim, where the incidence rate of the disease fell by 47.63% during the last week.
There have also been relatively low increases in the incidence of the disease during the last week in the counties of Laois (up to 2.8%), Offaly (up to 4.5%), Meath (up to 5.3%), Kildare (up 7.85%) and Wexford (up 8.6%)).
These are compared to an average increase in disease incidence for the country as a whole of 40.8%.
According to the Health Protection Surveillance Center, there have been 70.4 cases per 100,000 people across the country over the past two weeks.
The disease incidence rates by county listed from highest to lowest are as follows:
14-day incidence per 100,000, 09/20/2020
- Dublin – 138
- Louth – 101.6
- Donegal – 96.7
- Waterford – 93.8
- Wicklow – 70.9
- Ireland – 70.4
- Kildare – 66.5
- Offal – 60.3
- Westmeath – 51.8
- Limerick – 45.7
- Laois – 43.7
- Roscommon – 43.4
- Clare – 42.9
- Monaghan – 39.1
- Carlow – 36.9
- Longford – 36.7
- Leitrim – 34.3
- Wexford – 34.1
- Meath – 31.8
- Galway – 30.6
- Kilkenny – 27.2
- Cork – 26.9
- May – 26.1
- Cavan – 22.3
- Sligo – 18.3
- Kerry – 17.6
- Tipperary – 16.9
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