The growing number of Covid-19 cases is very serious, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said, adding that he had been concerned about the delta variant for some time.
«This is another turn in the path of Covid-19 and there will be large numbers of cases, which will continue to grow,» he said.
His comments come as the Health Ministry has reported 1,377 additional cases of the virus.
The number of people in the intensive care unit decreased from one to 22 people.
On this day last week, there were 16 patients in intensive care units.
The department said daily case numbers may change due to the data being reviewed, validated and updated in the future.
The Taoiseach added that we «need to closely monitor hospital admissions, illness and deaths» resulting from the high number of cases.
Mr. Martin is scheduled to meet Chief Medical Officer Dr. Tony Holohan and another public health figure on Wednesday.
They will discuss the recent rise in the number of cases, and look to the expected situation in August and September.
However, he said we are in a very different scenario than we had a year ago, and now more than 60% of the eligible population has been fully vaccinated.
He said officials will need to take a fresh look at where prevalence is highest and which age cohorts are affected, and consider strategies to bring infection rates down again.
Health officials earlier urged people waiting for a full vaccination to «take every precaution» this weekend after Ireland reported its highest daily total of Covid-19 cases in more than five months.
Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr Ronan Glenn said the infection rate in Ireland had risen to 180 per 100,000 cases and the high case numbers were beginning to translate into increasing numbers in hospitals and intensive care units.
There were 78 patients with Covid-19 in hospital as of 8 a.m., down one at the same time yesterday, compared to 52 this day last week.
In a Twitter post, Dr. Glenn said that while people «have great hope from the fact that our vaccination program is being implemented quickly», there are still more than two and a half million adults who are not fully or not adequately protected through vaccination. .
He urged people who have not yet been vaccinated to be careful about indoor spaces and not meet other people indoors if this can be avoided.
He also urged anyone with any symptoms of the common cold or flu – such as headaches, runny nose, stuffy sinuses and sore throat – to get tested for Covid-19.
As we enjoy beautiful weather, it is important that we continue to follow public health advice and socialize safely.#For all of us #HoldFirm #covid19
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– Dr. Ronan Glynn (@ronan_glynn) 17 July 2021
The National Public Health Emergency Team said there was a sharp increase in cases among 16- to 34-year-olds.
Dr Holohan said Covid-19 cases are increasing in 22 of the 26 counties.
Yesterday, the Ministry of Health was notified of about 1,200 new cases.
In Northern Ireland, 1,400 new cases of Covid-19 have been reported in the past 24 hours, along with two more deaths linked to the coronavirus.
If you are outside this weekend, please remember to keep a distance of 2 meters (6.5 feet) from others, wear a face covering, and keep hands clean to prevent the spread of #covid19. #we can do this #For all of us pic.twitter.com/bLB2AU7cjp
– HSE Ireland (HSELive) 17 July 2021
Earlier, Health Services chief executive Paul Reed said 63% of adults had been fully vaccinated, with 76% receiving a single dose.
In a Twitter post, he said hospital admissions and intensive care units were «going well.»
Some optimism and cautionary update. More than 5.1 million vaccines have now been administered. 63% of adults are now fully vaccinated and 76% partially. Very high levels tested yesterday with a positive 8.4%. But hospitalization and the intensive care unit are still good. Enjoy the sun and take care of yourself. Tweet embed
– Paul Reid (@paulreiddublin) 17 July 2021
Here is the entry room open today #covid19 Test centers: https://t.co/LXtmyGgjAv pic.twitter.com/A0taJrSAcA
– HSE Ireland (HSELive) 17 July 2021
Worrying about eating inside
A consultant pediatrician at Bon Secours Hospital in Cork said she was «really concerned» that if indoor dining was not done properly, it could affect the reopening of schools after the summer holidays.
Speaking about RTÉ’s Brendan O’Connor, Dr. Niamh Lynch said she was concerned that resuming indoor hospitality could lead to a spike in Covid-19 case numbers, if not done properly.
«If we have a further rise in numbers…one of the first responses is for people to turn around and say schools are not safe,» she said.
“My hope is that at this point, six or seven weeks after schools reopen, schools will completely crawl out with people evaluating their buildings, installing C02 screens and making sure they have adequate ventilation. I don’t see a lot of evidence from that, but that’s what I have to Happen or occur «.
Dr Lynch said she understood why the hospitality sector would want to reopen, but said Covid-19 «doesn’t really care about the economy».
«It’s constantly evolving, it just wants to move from one host to another,» she said. «It’s a bundle of protein, you don’t really care if we get tired of it or not.»
Cuba is added to the list of mandatory quarantine
Meanwhile, Health Minister Stephen Donnelly announced that he intends to add Cuba to the list of countries imposing mandatory quarantine on hotels.
People who arrive in Ireland after having been in or transiting through any listed country in the previous 14 days must enter the MHQ.
The Ministry of Health said in a statement that Cuba will soon be included in the reservation system for MHQ, as passengers from Cuba will enter quarantine starting at 4 a.m. on Tuesday.
More information about MHQ can be found at www.gov.ie/quarantine.
Mr. Donnelly also removed 34 countries from the list, with immediate effect.
They are: Afghanistan, Angola, Bahrain, Burundi. Cape Verde, Costa Rica; Dominican Republic; Ecuador, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia; French Guiana, Guyana, Haiti.
Kenya, Kyrgyzstan; Lesotho. Malawi, Maldives, Mongolia; Nepal; Sultanate of Oman.
Panama and the Philippines; Qatar; Rwanda; Somalia, Sri Lanka, Sudan; Tanzania, Turkey; The United Arab Emirates; Venezuela; Zambia.
Anyone traveling to Ireland should check the latest information regarding their country of origin at www.gov.ie/travel.
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