A FURTHER 543 new cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed in Ireland, the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) has said this evening.

In a statement, it said that a further 16 people confirmed to have Covid-19 had died.

Three of these deaths occurred in March, 12 in February and one in January. 

The median age of those who died was 88 years and the age range was 59 to 96. 

The death toll from Covid-19 in Ireland is 4,534, and the total number of confirmed cases is now at 226,358.

Of the cases notified today:

• 269 are men and 271 are women
• 73% are under 45 years of age
• The median age is 29 years old
• 235 cases are in Dublin, 50 are in Kildare, 39 are in Donegal, 31 are in Meath, 28 are in Galway and the remaining 160 cases are spread across 20 other counties.

As of 8am today, 340 Covid-19 patients are hospitalised, of which 85 are in ICU. There have been an 15 additional hospitalisations in the past 24 hours.

As of 10 March, 570,391 doses of Covid-19 vaccine have been administered in Ireland. A total of 409,662 people have received their first dose and 160,729 people have received their second dose.