Progress at Risk as Covid Rates Rise, Holohan Warns



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The Medical Director has expressed concern about an increase in the number of Covid-19 cases.

Dr Tony Holohan said that the number of confirmed cases in recent days was higher than health experts had anticipated given the positive trends that had previously been recorded since tighter restrictions were introduced.

Dr. Holohan warned that progress made to suppress the virus was now “at risk,” as 456 cases of the virus were reported today, with six additional deaths.

The death toll in the Republic is now 1,978, while there have been 67,526 cases of Covid-19 since the pandemic began.

As of 2 p.m. today, 254 coronavirus patients were in the hospital, 32 of whom were in intensive care.

Dr. Holohan said the five-day moving average of the number of cases had risen from 354 to 392.

“We have seen higher numbers in the last few days than we expected based on the encouraging trends of the last three weeks,” he said.

“We are concerned that this progress is at risk. We have to remember that the virus is still very active in the community and we cannot lose our guard.

“Nphet will continue to monitor the situation closely for the next few days.”

Professor Philip Nolan said that Ireland would record 1,000 cases per day and 150 deaths per month if Level 3 restrictions had been continued (Brian Lawless / PA)

Dr. Holohan urged people to adhere to well-established infection control measures.

“We all need to focus on what we can do to stop the spread of this disease. Wash our hands regularly, cover our faces, stay away from others, avoid crowds, limit our social network, know the symptoms, isolate ourselves and contact a GP if we have them, “he said.

Ireland

Covid-19: 456 new cases, six deaths

“Stay home and restrict our movements if you are a close contact for a confirmed case.”

Earlier, Professor Philip Nolan defended the imposition of Level 5 restrictions.

Professor Nolan, who chairs Nphet’s Epidemiological Modeling Advisory Group, said that if the country had remained at Level 3, it would currently face 1,000 cases per day, resulting in 1,200 hospitalizations and 150 deaths per month.



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