An international public health emergency has been declared by the World Health Organisation over the outbreak of coronavirus.
The Director-General of the WHO Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus made the announcement this evening.
He said: "The main reason for this declaration is not because of what is happening in China, but because of what is happening in other countries.
"Our greatest concern is the potential for the virus to spread to countries with weaker health systems, and which are ill-prepared to deal with it."
There had been fears of a potential case of the virus in Ireland earlier today.
A doctor told a High Court hearing that he had just received a text to say that a Dublin hospital, arising from a patient having attended its accident and emergency department, “potentially” has a case of the virus.
But a spokeswoman for the HSE told Dublin Live this evening there have been no confirmed cases of the virus in Ireland.
She said: "The HSE continues to carefully monitor the situation in China, in partnership with WHO and ECDC.
"There are no confirmed cases of novel coronavirus in Ireland to date.
"The risk of importation of a case into Ireland from another country is moderate according to ECDC.
"The current risk of someone in Ireland who has not been in Wuhan, Hubei province in China in the last 14 days catching novel coronavirus is very low.
"However, the criteria (as defined by the WHO) which are used to decide whether a person has contracted coronavirus, combined with increased surveillance, will lead to some individuals being triaged and/or tested as necessary from time to time.
"The HSE cannot comment on individual cases nor comment on speculation.
"The HSE Health Protection Surveillance Centre is updated daily at midday with the latest information about the novel coronavirus. Visit www.hpsc.ie
"The HSE has measures in place to respond and is well prepared in the event of a case in Ireland."
