Coronavirus: 358 New Cases; 18 Deaths Reported Today

National news updates on Tuesday 13th April.

Latest Figures:

The Health Protection Surveillance Centre has today been notified of 18 additional deaths related to COVID-19.

Of the deaths reported today, 7 occurred in April, 3 occurred in March, 3 occurred in February, 3 occurred in January. 1 death was reported as occurring before January.*

The median age of those who died was 85 years and the age range was 46-102 years.

There has been a total of 4,803 COVID-19 related deaths in Ireland.

As of midnight, Monday 12th April, the HPSC has been notified of 358 confirmed cases of COVID-19.

There has now been a total of 241,684** confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ireland.

Of the cases notified today:

163 are men / 192 are women

73% are under 45 years of age

The median age is 31 years old

166 in Dublin, 39 in Donegal, 16 in Kildare, 13 in Offaly, 12 in Meath, 12 in Limerick and the remaining 100 cases are spread across 18 other counties***.

As of 8am today, 205 COVID-19 patients are hospitalised, of which 48 are in ICU. 11 additional hospitalisations in the past 24 hours.

As of April 11th 2021, 1,063,666 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in Ireland:

749,450 people have received their first dose

314,216 people have received their second dose

The COVID-19 Dashboard provides up-to-date information on the key indicators of COVID-19 in the community including daily data on Ireland’s COVID-19 Vaccination Programme.

*There is 1 death where the date of death is under investigation.

**Validation of data at the HPSC has resulted in the denotification of 4 confirmed cases. The figure of 241,684 confirmed cases reflects this.

***County data should be considered provisional as the national Computerised Infectious Disease Reporting System (CIDR) is a dynamic system and case details are continually being validated and updated.

7-day incidence 58.7

5-day moving average 396

US decision on Johnson & Johnson:

Health authorities in the US have recommended a pause in the use of the Johnson and Johnson Covid vaccine.

In a joint statement , the Federal Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control say the move is out of an abundance of caution.

It's after 6 reported US cases of a rare and severe type of blood clot in individuals after receiving the vaccine, out of almost 7 million doses administered.

The FDA says the adverse events appear to be extremely rare.

Another warning from NPHET:

NPHET says the risk of a fourth wave of Covid-19 remains 'considerable' if restrictions are eased too quickly.

It'll appear before today's Oireachtas Health Committee to provide an update on the fight against the virus.

Acting Chief Medical Officer, Dr Ronan Glynn, will tell members a further wave can be mitigated if social contacts remains unchanged over the next 6 weeks.

Immunologist, Dr Lara Dungan, says the risk of another spike in cases is a real possibility so long as young people remain unvaccinated:

Hospital cases:

The number of people in hospital with Covid-19 has dropped by 13 percent in the past week.

227 patients are receiving treatment in hospital, while 50 are in ICU.

No new deaths were reported yesterday, along with 394 new cases.

It means the country's 5 day moving average now stands at 404 new cases, a decrease of 23 percent on the previous week.

UK vaccine roll-out:

All adults aged over 50 in the UK have now been offered a first dose of a Covid-19 vaccine. 

The British government says the target has been reached three days ahead of schedule.

Professor Christina Pagel is a member of the independent SAGE group there, she's worried there could be a variant that evades the injection:

Irish students returning home:

Irish Erasmus students in EU countries on the Government's mandatory hotel quarantine list will have the cost of their stay covered by the State.

The Department of Further and Higher Education says it follows the decision to add further EU countries from Thursday.

Many students had raised concerns they wouldn't be able to afford the cost of a 12-night stay, which is over 1,800.

Junior Higher Education Minister, Niall Collins, says the State will cover the cost for Erasmus students who arrives back over the coming months:

Change in distribution of AstraZeneca:

The Acting Chief Medical Officer says limiting the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine to over 60s "will likely have an impact" on the country's vaccine programme.

However Dr. Ronan Glynn says its extent "remains to be seen".

The recommendation from the National Immunisation Advisory Committee follows concerns over potential links between the vaccine and very rare blood clots.

All AstraZeneca vaccination clinics that were due to take place today have been cancelled.

Dr. Ronan Glynn says it'll take a number of days to calculate the impact of the decision on the country's vaccine programme:

The head of the National Immunisation Advisory Committee says people in their 60s won't have a choice of which Covid vaccine they get.

But Professor Karina Butler says those offered AstraZeneca in the coming weeks should understand it is safe and effective:

Professor of Immunovirology at UCC, Liam Fanning, is concerned the latest developments will undermine confidence in the AstraZeneca vaccine:

The Tanaiste says he believes public health officials made the right call in limiting the AstraZeneca vaccine to the over 60 age group.

Thousands of vaccines planned for today have been cancelled as a result.

Leo Varadkar says we'll know in a few days if the country can still vaccinate 80 per cent of the adult population by June, following the new advice.

The Tanaiste says he would personally take the AstraZeneca vaccine if offered and has no hesitation in recommending it: