There have been one further Coronavirus-related death and 765 new cases according to figures released this evening by the health authorities.
Five of the new cases are in Laois, meaning the county’s 14-day incidence rate now stands at 186.5 from 190.1 yesterday. The national incidence rate is currently 220.1, up from 209.6 yesterday.
The Laois rate had risen above 200 last week for the first time since early November but low case numbers in recent days has seen it drop again.
However, there is expected to be a lag in cases due to Christmas day and the Laois figure and the national one is expected to rise again over the next week or so.
Of the cases notified today:
- 401 are men/358 are women
- 70% are under 45 years of age
- The median age is 33 years old
- 291 of the cases are in Dublin, 63 in Cork, 59 in Monaghan, 49 in Louth, 43 in Meath, and the remaining 260 cases are spread across all other counties.
As of 2pm today 359 COVID-19 patients are hospitalised, of which 30 are in ICU. 41 additional hospitalisations in the past 24 hours, with 5 additional admissions to ICU.
Dr Tony Holohan, Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health said: “The data we are reporting today are lower than days up to 26 December. This however results from factors related to the time of the year, such as the lower rates of attendance and referrals and presentation for testing for several days over Christmas.
“We look at many metrics when monitoring the disease severity of COVID-19.
“Today we are reporting that we have now exceeded the cumulative number of people hospitalised in this third wave than in the second.
“Hospitalisations have increased sharply in the last two days. This is a concerning trend which reflects the sharp increase incidence we saw in the last 10 days.
“We are also seeing a steep rise in the positivity rates in community testing with a seven day average of over 9.2 percent up from 5.2 percent on 18th December.
“This indicates that the virus is increasing its foothold out in our communities. This is just one more reason why we are strongly advising everyone to stay safely at home to avoid transmitting or catching this virus, as it continues to circulate widely.
“Please come forward for testing if you feel unwell. Know the symptoms of COVID-19, and do not delay in phoning your GP for advice.
“Self-isolate in your room if you have a cough, fever, shortness of breath or change in sense of taste/smell. If you are a household contact of a confirmed case, restrict your movements until your household member receives a negative test result.
“In addition to staying at home except for essential reasons, these important individual actions will help to stop the exponential spread of COVID-19 in our communities and in turn protect the most vulnerable, our healthcare system and those who work on the frontlines.”
New Cases in Laois
- December 27 – 5
- December 26 – 2
- December 24 and 25 – 45
- December 23 – 12
- December 22 – 10
- December 21 – 13
- December 20 – 1
- December 19 – 19
- December 18 – 11
- December 17 – 10
- December 16 – 23
- December 15 – 13
- December 14 – 5
14-day case rate in Laois per 100,000 population
- December 27 – 186.5
- December 26 – 190.6
- December 24 and 25 – Unknown
- December 23 – 207.8
- December 22 – 194.8
- December 21 – 186.5
- December 20 – 173.6
- December 19 – 174.7
- December 18 – 152.3
- December 17 – 149.9
- December 16 – 141.7
- December 15 – 113.3
- December 14 – 100.4
New cases in Laois during past 14 days
- December 27 – 158
- December 26 – 161
- December 24 and 25 – Unknown
- December 23 – 176
- December 22 – 165
- December 21 – 158
- December 20 – 147
- December 19 – 148
- December 18 – 129
- December 17 – 127
- December 16 – 120
- December 15 – 96
- December 14 – 85
SEE ALSO – Check out the 2020 Remembered series on LaoisToday
