Another 25 deaths announced in the Republic as the closure extended until May 5



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The national public health emergency team reported Friday the deaths of 25 other patients, 14 men and 11 women, diagnosed with Covid-19.

Some 23 of the deaths occurred in the east and two in the west. About 16 of the patients were reported to have underlying health conditions. There have now been 288 Covid-19 related deaths in the Republic. The average age of today’s deaths is 85.

The National Public Health Emergency Team also reported 480 new confirmed cases on Friday. The total number of confirmed cases is now 7,054.

Of the 251 patients admitted to intensive care, 157 remain there, while 62 have been discharged and 31 have died. About 203 of these patients had an underlying condition. The median age of patients in intensive care is 61 years.

There have been 135 Covid-19 groups in nursing homes and affected homes, one in five employees and one in six residents have tested positive, she said.

Chief physician Dr. Tony Holohan said the public health emergency team is concerned about the rate of infection in nursing homes, although there are still many without groups and similar patterns have been observed in other European countries.

An analysis of all cases as of last Wednesday shows that 45 percent were male and 55 percent female. The average age is 48 years.

Of the 7,071 cases reported, 1,631 had been hospitalized, or 23 percent. Of those hospitalized, 244 had been admitted to intensive care.

The cases among health workers are now 1,949.

Dr. Holohan said that the age range of people who have died with Covid-19 varies from 32 years to 105.

Of the 288 deaths, 207 occurred in hospitals, 242 had underlying health conditions, and 175 were men.

In addition to the 7,071 cases diagnosed in Ireland, another 1,035 tested positive in a laboratory in Germany where they were processed, giving a total of 8,089. Dr. Holohan emphasized that these cases were “historical”, spanning several weeks and had no impact on the rate of growth of the disease during this period.

When asked how many people are waiting to be tested, Dr. Holohan replied that anyone who meets the criteria for the test can now be tested quickly, “in a short period of time.”

He said he did not believe anyone was waiting for a test to be performed, although there were delays in processing the tests. Efforts are being made to expand the capacity of the test system so that the results can be provided the next day, he added.

More than 63,000 tests have been processed, he said, including 14-16,000 conducted in Germany.

Earlier on Friday, the government announced that the restrictions that expire on Sunday will run until May 5, another three weeks.

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