A further 12 people have died from coronavirus in the Republic of Ireland with a 236 further cases of the disease.
The Department of Health announced the figures this afternoon with a total of 1,458 people now dying from the disease and 22,996 cases since the outbreak began.
Five more people died from Covid-19 in Northern Ireland today with 435 deaths in the country since it arrived.
Latest HPSC data
· 57% are female and 43% are male
· the median age of confirmed cases is 49 years
· 2,986 cases (13%) have been hospitalised
· Of those hospitalised, 383 cases have been admitted to ICU
· 6,771 cases are associated with healthcare workers
· Dublin has the highest number of cases at 11,068 (49% of all cases) followed by Kildare with 1,324 cases (6%) and then Cork with 1,207 cases (5%)
· Of those for whom transmission status is known: community transmission accounts for 61%, close contact accounts for 36%, travel abroad accounts for 3%
Meanwhile it emerged today that the majority of people who contract Covid-19 are recovering completely, as the number of those in Intensive Care Units with the virus goes down.
And Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) remains crucial in the fight against the pandemic as healthcare workers now need 9million face masks per week - which comes in at a cost of €1billion per year.
And as the spread of the virus slows down, the HSE plans to this week open up more services to non-Covid patients, particularly those with cancer or in need of other urgent procedures.
