A FURTHER 592 cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed in Ireland, the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) said this evening.

NPHET also reported 10 additional deaths of people with Covid-19. There has now been a total of 4,509 Covid-19 related deaths in Ireland and 225,179 confirmed incidences of the disease. 

Of the cases notified today:

• 299 are men / 288 are women
• 72% are under 45 years of age
• The median age is 32 years old
• 253 in Dublin, 52 in Kildare, 35 in Donegal, 33 in Meath, 28 in Galway and the remaining 191 cases are spread across all other counties.

As of 8am today, 359 Covid-19 patients are hospitalised, of which 87 are in ICU. There were 32 additional hospitalisations in the past 24 hours.

Dr Ronan Glynn, Deputy Chief Medical Officer said: “Today marks one year since we reported Ireland’s first death related to COVID-19. More than 4,500 people have lost their lives with this disease. We remember them, and their families and friends, as well as the many people who remain seriously ill or who are dealing with long-term health issues because of COVID-19.

“We now have three vaccines and a fourth authorised by the European Medicines Agency today, which offers us a way out of this pandemic. We must continue to protect as many people as possible from the severe effects of Covid-19 and to give people a chance to become vaccinated over the next number of weeks and months.

“Your efforts to limit contacts and follow the public health advice is not in vain, it is to protect people and it directly saves lives.”