The head of the HSE says the Irish health service is prepared for a second surge of Covid-19 with a planned €1billion spend on personal protective equipment (PPE) this year.
Paul Reid, pictured, yesterday told RTE Radio 1’s The Business: “We’re in a stronger position on many fronts – knowledge of PPE is much better, but also we’ve built up indigenious Irish industry to give us a bit of resilience.
“Right at the start of this global pandemic, as we saw what was happening across the world, there was no doubt as Ireland looked on, as the health service looked on, we were quite scared about what was happening.
“In terms of what may happen next, I will always want to ensure that we do the right thing.
“We would normally spend less than €20million per year on PPE. Our total spend this year will be close to €1billion, if not just over it.”
Mr Reid’s comments come as a number of countries – including Spain, the Ukraine and Vietnam – are warning of a second surge of the virus.
Vietnam is on high alert after health officials there detected the first local infection in three months.
Meanwhile, the Ukraine has seen a surge in Covid-19 cases and South Korea is reporting its biggest daily surge in cases in three months.
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