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PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICIALS have confirmed another 1,283 cases of Covid-19 in Ireland this afternoon.
The permanent total of confirmed cases since the first virus outbreak here has reached 49,962.
The Health Department reported three additional deaths today, bringing the total number of people who have died to 1,852.
The national incidence rate from 14 days to midnight is now 251 per 100,000.
Of the current cases, 651 are women and 628 men, with 68% in people under 45 years of age.
The average age of people with a confirmed case in today’s update is 31.
The highest number of confirmed cases today was registered in Dublin, where 408 new cases have been reported.
156 cases were confirmed in Cork, 88 in Kildare, 80 in Meath, 55 in Limerick and the remaining 496 cases are distributed in the other 21 counties.
At 2:00 p.m., 277 patients with Covid-19 are hospitalized, of which 33 are in the ICU. There were 17 additional hospitalizations in the last 24 hours.
An announcement on tighter restrictions is expected tomorrow when the cabinet meets to make a decision on its response to the increasing incidence of Covid-19.
Higher Education Minister Simon Harris has said the government will take “decisive” action tomorrow to introduce new restrictions and that any action taken will be implemented at the national level.
Speaking on RTÉ’s This Week in Politics, Harris said that “I want people to know that the government will act tomorrow. The action will be decisive ”.
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“It is now clear that the virus is at such a level in all of our communities that a county-by-county approach is not enough,” Harris said.
Yesterday, the three coalition party leaders, along with the Ministers of Health, Finance and Public Expenditure, met to discuss whether Ireland should adopt Level 5 restrictions following a recommendation from the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET).
NPHET is advising the government for the second time in two weeks to move Ireland to Level 5 restrictions to slow the growing spread of the virus.
If the NPHET council were to be fully implemented, Level 5 restrictions would be imposed for a period of six weeks.
However, it is understood that there is an inclination in the government to impose Level 4 restrictions with some modifications to effectively bring the limitations between Level 4 and Level 5.
Only the full cabinet will make an official decision, which will meet tomorrow.
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