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Another 27 people died from Covid-19, bringing the total to 1,429, according to new figures from the National Public Health Emergency Team.
The total number of cases in the State is now 22,541, after an increase of 156 cases.
Speaking earlier on Friday, Health Minister Simon Harris said progress is being made in nursing homes to fight the spread of Covid-19, but it remains an “area of concern.”
Mr. Harris said it is “a tragic fact” that many people have died from the virus in Ireland and “many of them have been in nursing home facilities.”
The Minister spoke to journalists on Friday morning at the opening of a Covid-19 community assessment center for vulnerable groups at Mater Hospital in North Dublin.
“Regarding the issue of nursing homes, there is no doubt that in this country, as it has become the situation in much of the world, we have seen particular challenges in relation to long-term residential care centers” , said.
Mr. Harris said he was encouraged by the large-scale testing program for staff and residents in long-term care facilities and that he continues to collaborate with Nursing Homes Ireland and Hiqa.
“Many nursing homes that have Covid-19 are handling the situation extremely well, they are working very hard. An outbreak in itself is not a sign of failure in that nursing home, “he added.
On Friday, the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) announced the death of 27 other patients.
‘Marginalized groups’
On Friday, Harris opened a new Covid-19 evaluation center at Dublin Mater Hospital to specifically work with marginalized groups in the city center.
According to official figures, about 58 percent of Roma who have been tested and 43 percent of travelers have tested positive.
The overall positivity rate for all people tested has dropped to less than 4 percent.
The new center includes a mobile unit to test and treat marginalized groups throughout the city center, and will be able to deliver the test results in less than an hour.
NPHET will examine the situation in meat factories, detention centers and other places where virus “hot spots” have been identified at its meeting today.
Santa Maria
The minister said he could not confirm whether he had received a protected disclosure from a staff member at St Mary’s nursing home in Dublin. Phoenix Park St Mary’s is one of the most affected nursing homes in the country with 24 confirmed coronavirus deaths.
A staff member made a protected disclosure alleging deficiencies in the facility’s response to Covid-19 earlier this week.
“I am not allowed to confirm receipt of a protected disclosure, but I can tell you that there is a very clear protocol in terms of what should be done when a minister receives a protected disclosure and I want to assure people that any protected disclosure they receive will be treated. most seriously by me personally and will be processed by my department in accordance with the law, “he said.
“I think it is very important that someone who has a concern or opinion comes forward and makes that information available to the authorities.”
Harris said the HSE now has the capacity to perform 12,000 tests a day, and that this number will increase to 15,000 in mid-May.
He said there were encouraging signs in terms of hospital and ICU admissions, but warned that “this virus has not disappeared.”
“It continues to wreak havoc on the lives of many people, it continues to cost lives in this country and it continues to make people sick. It wouldn’t take us long to slide back, ”he said.
The Minister said that anyone currently flying to the State must complete a passenger location form and requested to isolate themselves for two weeks and reveal where they are self-isolating.
“Right now that is being done administratively and now we are looking to put that on a regulatory basis to make it mandatory,” he said.
Harris also said that Ireland needs a “new government fairly quickly” and that “a huge challenge is looming” in terms of rebuilding society and the economy.
“We need a government with a Dáil majority, with a clear program and with a degree of certainty that this could take four or five years to start addressing some of those problems.”
Mr. Harris also said that he hopes it brings “certainty and clarity” for Leaving Certificate students and their families today. Your comments come Leaving Cert exams will be canceled and replaced with a “Plan B” in which students will receive grades based on their class work.
Students who are not happy with their grades are likely to have the option of taking written exams at a much later date, possibly until January 2021.
Reopening of pubs
Meanwhile, chief physician Dr. Tony Holohan said Friday that there is “very little chance” that bars and pubs will open in June due to the difficulty of complying with the restrictions necessary to maintain physical distance.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Today with the Seán O’Rourke show, Dr. Holohan also said that NPHET should discuss additional measures regarding travel in and out of Ireland to examine whether any changes need to be made to that specific aspect of the plan. coronavirus.
Travel remains a challenge, he said, and the recommendation remains that people avoid all non-essential travel both off-island and back to Ireland.
The issue will be discussed today at an NPHET meeting along with the mandatory quarantine.
Dr. Holohan said the government will be given advice after the NPHET meeting, but said that social distancing will continue to be the “challenge”.
The country is fine, he said. “We are holding on. We have managed to suppress the spread of the infection,” but there was an impact among vulnerable groups and in nursing homes.
Dr. Holohan also said that three weeks needed to be left between each phase of easing the restrictions to allow enough time to see if something not predicted in terms of the virus was detected, he said.
Facial masks
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said that the public is unlikely to be asked to wear masks consistently when outside the home, but it could be a possible requirement in confined spaces like public transportation or shops.
Speaking at the Pat Kenny Show in Newstalk, Varadkar said the wage subsidy and wage subsidy plan would continue beyond mid-June.
While the schemes “cannot last forever,” withdrawing them would have to be done gradually. The exact details of how the schemes will continue have not yet been resolved, he added, the government will clarify its plans before the end of May.
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