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The Health Department no longer advises close contacts of people infected with Covid-19 to get tested, with the state’s testing and tracking system under intense strain during the latest coronavirus surge.
The announcement comes as 12 more deaths and 1,620 new cases of Covid were registered in the Republic on Thursday.
There have now been a total of 2,237 coronavirus-related deaths in the state.
Of the new cases, 65 percent are in people under 45, with 498 cases located in Dublin, 203 in Limerick, 89 in Galway, 73 in Cork, 67 in May, and the remaining 690 cases spread across all other counties. .
The latest figures show that 490 Covid-19 patients are in hospital, with 42 in intensive care.
Monaghan and Donegal counties have the highest infection rates in the state.
In Monaghan, the 14-day incidence rate per 100,000 population is 553.9 and in Donegal it is 532.1. The lowest rate is in Leitrim, with 112.4 cases per 100,000.
He said the breeding number is at least 1.6 to 1.8, and the daily growth rate is estimated to be 7 to 10 percent, giving a doubling time of seven to 10 days.
“We know of additional positive tests that have not yet been reported on the system in recent days,” he said at a news conference Thursday. “This system was not designed to report 2,000, 3,000 or 4,000 tests per day,” he said.
Professor Nolan said this lag “in no way interferes” with case identification, but acknowledged that the epidemiological situation is “somewhat worse” than has been reported.
Separately, the HSE confirmed that it will not recommend close contacts for a Covid-19 test starting Thursday. He said the step was being taken to ensure that people showing symptoms are prioritized and are tested as quickly as possible.
HSE Clinical Director Dr. Colm Henry said that staying home and restricting movement was “the strongest defense we have against the spread of this virus.”
He added that the reintroduction of Level 5 restrictions starting today was essential to protect vital public services, such as hospital admissions and non-Covid care, and to have maximum impact in the shortest time frame possible to minimize the spread of the illness.
December socializing
Previously, Dr. Holohan blamed a “substantial amount” of socializing in December for the sharp increase in Covid-19 cases during Christmas.
He said the country was now at a point of “unsustainable growth” in the level of infections.
Dr Holohan told RTÉ’s Morning Ireland program: “We know that a substantial amount of activity took place in the days and weeks after the restrictions were released.
“We know that the average number of contacts – we track this type of information – that each case is identifying has increased dramatically to levels we have not seen since the beginning of this pandemic.
“And we got involved in an amount of social activity throughout society that really provided this opportunity for the virus to spread at the levels that we are seeing now.”
Dr Holohan said the country was now at a point of “unsustainable growth in the level of infections, although still lower than the rest of Europe, but one that really creates a risk.”
New measures
Taoiseach Micheál Martin described the state of the pandemic as “extremely serious” when he announced the introduction of stricter measures for at least a month in a televised address to the nation on Wednesday night.
The new measures include a ban on visitors to private homes or gardens, unless they are providing care for children or the elderly or vulnerable, or as part of a bubble of support.
No social or family gatherings will be allowed in any setting, with an exemption for weddings with up to six guests and funerals with up to 10 mourners.
The Government has agreed today that Level 5 established in the Plan to Live with COVID will be applied at the national level.
For more information, visit https://t.co/bcWUJ5BaHe pic.twitter.com/tBXzbuhxK1
– MerrionStreet.ie #StaySafe #HoldFirm (@merrionstreet) December 30, 2020
The public is asked to stay home in addition to traveling for work, education, or other essential purposes.
Exercise is allowed within 5 km of the home, but all non-essential stores and gyms will close their doors at close of business hours on Thursday.
Schools will reopen on January 11, extending the Christmas break by three days. – Additional reports: PA
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