Three more deaths from Covid-19

Three more deaths from Covid-19 have been reported today along with 357 new cases of the virus.

There have been eight new cases in Meath and 18 in Louth and the majority of the cases – 218 – are in Dublin.

It comes after Health Minister,Stephen Donnelly, became unwell this afternoon and contacted his GP for a Covid-19 test.

Members of Cabinet will work remotely and restrict their movements rather than self-isolate, while the Dail has been adjourned.

There have now been 1,787 Covid-19 related deaths in Ireland to date and since the beginning of the pandemic, there have been 31,549 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Ireland.

Of the cases notified today 185 are men and 172 are women, 63% are under 45 years of age, 38% are confirmed to be associated with outbreaks or are close contacts of a confirmed case and 60 cases have been identified as community transmission.

The HSE is working to identify any contacts the patients may have had to provide them with information and advice to prevent further spread.

Dr Ronan Glynn, acting Chief Medical Officer at the Department of Health said: “In the first half of 2020, Ireland responded swiftly to a new and unpredictable pandemic. Our collective response suppressed the curve, saved lives and put us on a solid foundation to deal with Covid-19 going forward.

“Now, we must focus on our response to the pandemic in the medium term. Today, government launched a 5-Level framework.

“The basic preventions against the spread of Covid-19 remain unchanged; wash your hands regularly, physically distance from others including friends and family, wear a face covering, know the symptoms and what to do if you experience them,” he said.