The recent surge in Covid deaths is directly due to restrictions being lifted before Christmas, according to Professor Gabriel Scally.
A daily-record of 101 deaths was confirmed here yesterday, while one of those people was 19-years-old.
However, the lowest number of cases since December 28th was also recorded, with 879 new infections.
Carlow and Kilkenny each had 11 new cases.
The Chief Medical Officer, Tony Holohan, says we have a long way to go to bring the virus under control.
While Professor Scally says the recent death toll is a tragedy.
Hospitals
The head of a group of seven public hospitals believes the country has passed the peak of the third wave of Covid-19.
Latest figures show there are 1,368 patients in public hospitals with the virus – compared to a peak across the health system of 2,020 over two weeks ago.
29 of these are at St Luke’s General for Carlow and Kilkenny after one new recent admission while there were six extra patients at University Hospital Waterford, bringing their total to 96 last night.
Nine of these are in intensive care there with three in the similar unit at St Luke’s, among 207 nationwide in ICUs.
The two facilities between them have three further suspected cases while there’s one critical care bed available at St Luke’s.
Tony Canavan, the chief executive of the Saolta Group, says there’s been an improvement in the hospitals in the west of Ireland.
Travel
The government’s being accused of “incompetence” for failing to have legislation prepared for mandatory quarantine in hotels.
It announced the measure last week for those arriving from Brazil, South Africa, or arrivals who don’t have a negative PCR test.
But Cabinet heard yesterday the process will be delayed for weeks as legislation needs to be drawn up.
Labour Party leader Alan Kelly says it’s a “colossal error”.
Co-leader of the Social Democrats, Roisin Shortall, says it’s yet another example of government’s failure to deal with international travel.
WHO
The World Health Organisation team in China investigating the origins of Covid-19 say they’ve ruled out no scenario for its first outbreak.
They’ve been visiting hospitals and markets in Wuhan to work out how the pandemic started.
Peter Daszak is from the W-H-O and says they’re getting closer to finding out what happened.
But he has warned, they’ve a difficult job ahead of them.
Mental Health Issues
A survey’s found almost half of people in the UK with mental health issues say they’re concerned about returning to work in an office after lockdown.
That’s compared to 30% of the wider workforce.
Campaigners say flexible working should be offered when restrictions are lifted and statutory sick pay should also be made more generous.
