There have been a further four Coronavirus-related deaths and 744 more cases according to figures released by the health authorities this evening.
Fewer than five of the new cases reported were in Laois which means that the 14-day incidence rate in the county drops below 200 to 190.1.
It is the first time in a while that the incident rate in Laois is lower than the national figure, which now stands at 209.6.
Having had the fifth highest rate a week ago, Laois have dropped back to 12th in the overall table, though the case numbers are still extraordinarily high.
Of the cases notified today:
- 388 are men/354 are women
- 64% are under 45 years of age
- The median age is 34 years old
- 246 of the cases are in Dublin, 131 in Cork, 51 in Limerick, 40 in Wexford, 33 in Donegal and the remaining 243 cases are spread across 19 other counties.
As of 8am today 324 COVID-19 patients are hospitalised, of which 26 are in ICU. There have been 50 additional hospitalisations in the past 24 hours.
Dr Tony Holohan, Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health said: “We have seen a significant increase in the number of hospitalisations in the last two weeks from less than 190 to 324 today.
“This indicates a deteriorating disease trajectory nationally and is a significant reminder of the severity of this disease.
“There have been further increases across key indicators of COVID-19 right across the country and the growth rate of the epidemic has accelerated in recent days.”
“Due to the lower volume of tests being carried out over Christmas Day and yesterday, we believe there are higher levels of disease circulating in the community than today’s reported case numbers reflect.
“We expect, therefore, to see a large increase in cases reported over the coming days.”
“If we do not act now to stop the spread of COVID-19, we will not be able to protect those in our society that are most at risk of serious illness or death.
“Stay home, do not visit friends or family unless you are providing essential care and do not have visitors to your home. Follow the public health advice.”
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