The Deputy Chief Medical Officer has said health officials remain concerned about the Delta variant of Covid-19, but added that the strain will not stop Ireland emerging from the pandemic.
Dr Ronan Glynn issued some updated information on the situation with the strain in Ireland and the impact it has had on the country so far.
Almost three-quarters of all new coronavirus cases are now accounted for by the Delta variant, with top medics concerned over the threat posed by the more transmissible mutation.
"The proportion of cases that are due to the Delta variant has increased rapidly over the last four weeks from 5% of cases in early June to now accounting for about 70% of cases and rising," Dr Glynn said.
"So why are we so concerned about this variant? Well, based on available scientific evidence, it appears that the Delta variant may be up to twice as transmissible as the virus which we were dealing with this time last year.
"This increased transmissibility is now playing out in the changing profile of the disease here - over the past fortnight our 14-day incidence has increased by 30%, our 5-day average of cases has increased from just over 300 cases per day to almost 500 cases per day, and we are now also seeing positivity rates beginning to increase despite increased numbers attending for testing."
It comes as the counties with the highest 14-day incidence rate per 100,000 of the population were revealed by the HPSC yesterday.
The top five counties are Donegal, Sligo, Waterford, Roscommon, and Limerick.
In a video shared by the Department of Health, Dr Glynn highlighted the rising incidence in certain areas.
"So far, some parts of the country have been more affected than others, including Donegal, Waterford and Dublin, but we are also seeing high or increasing incidence in Sligo, Limerick, Roscommon and Meath," he said.
"While numbers in hospital remain low, we have seen a small but concerning increase in hospitalisations over the past week and we will be monitoring this closely in the weeks ahead."
The other reason why health officials are so concerned about the Delta variant, Dr Glynn explained, is because it also appears to infect people who have received the first of their two-dose vaccines.
This is why they are "so keen" people get inoculated as quickly as possible, while it is also important for people to remember the length of time it takes to be protected from the virus after their vaccines.
People can be regarded as fully vaccinated two weeks after the one-shot Janssen jab, two weeks after the second dose of Astrazeneca or Moderna, and one week after the second Pfizer injection.
"Since the vaccine programme started, we have consistently said that vaccination and our continued adherence to the public health advice we are all so familiar with are our pathway out of this pandemic," Dr Glynn added.
"While we are concerned about the impact of the Delta variant will have on the disease in Ireland, the risks posed by the Delta variant do not change this reality.
"All of the things you have been doing over the past 18 months to protect yourself, your family and your friends remain effective and crucially, if you are not fully vaccinated, remain just as important now as at any time previously.
"Please prioritise who you need to need to see. Remember, the fewer people you meet, the less chance the virus has to spread, either to you, or by you."
He urged people not to meet up in large groups, to gather outdoors when possible, wear a mask and use hand sanitiser regularly, and most importantly, if you have cold or flu-like systems, assume that you have Covid, isolate and get tested.
