The Department of Health has this evening reported a further 1,361 cases of COVID-19 in the State.
There are 160 people in hospitals with the virus across the country as of 8am this morning, of whom 26 are in intensive care units.
Dr Tony Holohan again stressed the importance of driving up vaccination rates as high as possible.
“The higher we go, the better the protection we have and the sooner we’ll be able to ease more of the economic and social restrictions that still remain in place,” said the Chief Medical Officer this evening.
“Walk-in vaccination centres are opening across the country, anyone over 16 years of age can register for a COVID-19 vaccine.”
Dr Holohan told people to encourage their friends and family to ensure they get reliable information about the vaccines available in Ireland, and to get vaccinated as soon as possible.
“For our exhausted healthcare workers, the winter months ahead mean flu, other respiratory infection admissions alongside the backlog of scheduled and unscheduled care that has been disrupted due to COVID-19,” he added.
“We owe it to them to continue to maintain the basic personal public health protections; manage your contacts, keep distance, wash/sanitize hands regularly, cough/sneeze etiquette, avoid crowds, wear masks indoors and in crowded settings, if you experience COVID-19 symptoms isolate and get tested.”
