Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly is urging people to hold firm after another surge in Covid-19 cases on Sunday.
A further 255 new cases were confirmed today although just one more person died from the disease.
The Fianna Fail minister, quoting a tweet from singers Jedward, asked the public to think of their relatives who have underlying health conditions.
Mr Donnelly tweeted: "32% of Irish people have a long-standing health condition. They are our parents, our siblings, our children, our friends, our neighbours. Every single one of them is important. Hold firm."
The tweet the Minister was citing saw pop duo Jedward plead with people to wear a mask naming their late mother as someone who would have not survived Covid.
They tweeted: "Our Mom wouldn’t have survived Covid-19 with all that’s going on in the world! People with underlying health conditions. Their lives matter! Please have a heart.
"We all want to wake up on Christmas morning and have our families there and for many years to come."
