Health officials have announced 10 further coronavirus-related deaths and 426 new confirmed cases.

The national death toll now sits at 1,506, with 23,827 confirmed cases here.

It marks a steep rise in confirmed cases compared to recent days; however, the Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan said many of them are “not cases that have arisen in the last short period of time.”

He said there was a delay in notifications at one hospital in the south of the country, which meant the figures built up without the National Public Health Emergency being aware of them.

Meanwhile, one previously announced death has been denotified after doctors decided it was not coronavirus-related.

The Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan at a COVID-19 briefing in the Department of Health, 14-05-2020. Image: Rory Walsh/Newstalk

Dr Holohan said the hospital in question reported around 250 cases - some of which go back as far as March - in the past few hours.

By law, infectious diseases should be notified to authorities immediately.

“That was something that we couldn’t have known about from where we sit and they were all reported in one day,” he said.

“The point I am making is, I know nobody here is interpreting them as being part of a new wave of infection, but to really emphasise the point, these are for the most part cases spread over a very lengthy period of time that goes back to mid-March.”

All of the country's hospitals will now have their COVID-19 systems examined to ensure they are meeting their legal obligation to report infectious diseases immediately.

As of midnight on Tuesday, more than 30% (7,123) of the country’s confirmed cases were associated with healthcare workers.

Some 57% were women and 42% were men.

A total of 3,058 people had been hospitalised and 387 had been admitted to intensive care.

Professor Philip Nolan, Chair of the NPHET modelling group at a COVID-19 briefing in the Department of Health, 14-05-2020. Image: Rory Walsh/Newstalk

Professor Philip Nolan, Chair of the NPHET modelling group, said: “All indicators of the spread of COVID-19 are decreasing, including the average number of cases per day, number of people in hospital and ICU, admissions to ICU and number of reported deaths per day.”

“This is reinforced by our estimated reproduction number which is currently stable between 0.4 and 0.6.

“We will be monitoring this figure and the overall number of infections in the population very closely over the coming weeks.”

Dr Holohan said NPHET met earlier today and has given its advice to the Government.

“We still want to see progress over the coming days,” he said.

“We need to continue our physical distancing and hygiene measures if we are to continue to suppress the spread of the disease.”

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar today said he is increasingly confident that phase one of the reopening plan can begin as planned next week.

Minister for Health Simon Harris during a press conference at the Department of Health in Dublin to speak about the COVID-19 outbreak. Picture by: Brian Lawless/PA Wire/PA Images

It comes after the Health Minister Simon Harris said the reproductive rate of the virus was now “remarkably stable” in the Republic.

He said the reproductive rate - which refers to the average number of people likely to be infected by each confirmed coronavirus case - is now down to between 0.4 and 0.6.

The first phase of restrictions being eased is due next Monday, May 18th and Minster Harris has said he remains “very hopeful” restrictions can be eased as plan.

HSE chief Paul Reid has warned however that Monday will not be 'the single big moment' in the easing of coronavirus restrictions, and will instead be a 'minor step along the way.'

Meanwhile, the HSE has said it is hoping turnaround times for a COVID-19 test will be three days from Monday.

With reporting from Shane Beatty