Three further deaths related to COVID-19 and 606 new cases have been reported this evening by the Department of Health.
Of the new cases, 12 are in Galway, where the 14-day incidence rate is now 134.1 cases per 100,000 inhabitants. A total of 346 additional cases were confirmed in the county in the past fortnight.
75% of the cases reported today are under 45 years of age and the median age is 33 years old.
At 8am today, 312 people diagnosed with COVID were in hospital, of which 75 were in ICU. There have been 24 hospitalisations in the past 24 hours.
Dr Ronan Glynn, Deputy Chief Medical Officer said that the vast majority of people are making a huge sacrifice and missing time with loved ones in order for us to stay on course with the public health guidance.
“However, we know that in the week ending March 14, approximately one-in-ten people visited another household for social reasons, with most of these visits involving time spent indoors,” said Dr Glynn.
“While this clearly demonstrates that the vast majority of people are sticking with the public health guidance, it does represent a significant change versus January when just one in 20 people were visiting other homes for social reasons.
“Please continue to stick with the public heath advice and avoid visiting other homes at this time – do not give this virus the opportunities it is seeking to spread.”
