The Department of Health has reported 582 new cases of Covid-19 in Ireland.
Almost three quarters of today's cases were identified in people under the age of 45 years old.
The median age is 32 years old.
Statement from the National Public Health Emergency Team
There have been no deaths reported to the Health Protection Surveillance Centre today.
There has been a total of 4,566 #COVID19 related deaths in Ireland.
— Department of Health (@roinnslainte) March 18, 2021
Most of today's cases were identified in Dublin, where there are 156 new cases.
Elsewhere, there are 23 new cases in Meath, 19 in Donegal, 15 in Louth and 14 in Kildare.
The remaining 198 cases are spread across 20 other counties.
Leitrim is the only county in Ireland with no new cases of the virus.
🆕The country's R number has risen to between 0.8 and 1.1
— Eoghan Murphy (@eoghanymurphy) March 18, 2021
Meanwhile, there have been 23 additional hospitalisations in the past twenty-four hours.
In total, there are 345 Covid-19 patients in hospitals - 83 of whom are in intensive care.
As of Monday, 165,398 people have received both doses of a Covid-19 vaccine.
EMA Finds AstraZeneca Vaccine To Be Safe
Meanwhile, the European Medicines Agency has found the AstraZeneca Vaccine to a "safe and effective" vaccine.
EMA’s safety committee (PRAC) concludes that the benefits of the #COVID19Vaccine AstraZeneca still outweigh its risks despite possible link to rare blood clots associated with low levels of blood platelets.
👉Read more: https://t.co/WCdaKqOPxB pic.twitter.com/0NO8kh5a48— EU Medicines Agency (@EMA_News) March 18, 2021
The temporary suspension of the jab in Ireland has led to around 30,000 people having their vaccinations delayed.
HSE chief executive Paul Reid says they plan to administer the shot to healthcare workers and medically vulnerable people as soon as possible.
