A further 52 coronavirus-related deaths have been announced alongside 2,371 new cases.
Health officials said 50 of the deaths occurred this month, two of which are still under investigation.
This afternoon, there were 1,931 patients in Irish hospitals, with 219 in intensive care.
The death toll in Ireland now stands at 2,870, with the total number of cases at 184,279.
The national total accounts for the denotification of 14 previously-confirmed cases.
We've never seen 66% of patients in ICU (211) being treated for the same illness. We're battling hard to sustain safe levels of care but its getting harder.300 patients are also receiving respiratory support outside of ICU. Nothing is more serious. #StaySafe @HSELive #COVID19
— Paul Reid (@paulreiddublin) January 22, 2021
The Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan said we are now seeing the first signs of a reduction in the prevalaence of the virus in the community.
“We know that the ongoing restrictions are very challenging for people but, through the hard work and sacrifice of the vast majority of people, we are starting to see the first signs of a lower prevalence of the disease in the population,” he said.
“Strictly adhering to the public health measures is the key to making real progress in terms of flattening the curve and lowering the current trends in our hospitals and ICUs.”
Test and trace
He urged anyone experiencing symptoms to contact their doctor without delay.
“The ‘COVID-19 find-test-trace-isolate’ process is vital to our efforts. Our data is telling us that for a third of people, it’s four days or more from the time they first experience symptoms of COVID-19 to the time they get tested.
“We all need to contact our GP as soon as symptoms occur, so we can trace our contacts and prevent further infections.”
“This weekend, we need everyone to stay the course with hand washing, covering coughs, wearing face coverings and keeping a 2m distance. In order to take care of each other, we all need to stay at home, except for essential reasons, to minimise the spread of COVID-19 to ourselves and our loved ones.”
The national 14-day rate of the coronavirus in Ireland, 22-01-2021. Image: Department of Health.Of the cases announced this evening, 757 were in Dublin, with 237 in Cork, 154 in Waterford, 123 in Wexford, 114 in Louth, and the remaining 986 spread across all other counties.
The National 14-day rate of the virus now stands at 1,017.1 cases per 100,000 people.
Monaghan still has the highest rate in the country; however, it has today fallen below 2,000 for the first time in weeks.
There are now nine counties with 14-day rates higher than 1,000.
The seven-day incidence of the virus is now 372.6, while the five-day moving average is 2,315.
