The Acting Chief Medical Officer Dr Ronan Glynn has said mandatory quarantine for anyone arriving into Ireland would be a "desirable measure."
He was speaking after he announced that no new COVID-19 deaths had been reported in Ireland in the last 24 hours.
Meanwhile, 11 new cases have been confirmed.
It takes the death toll in Ireland to 1,746 and the total number of confirmed cases to 25,638.
Dr Glynn said the National Public Health Emergency Team understands that it is not practical to close off all travel to the island of Ireland; however, he said it wants to shut down all but non-essential travel.
“From a public health perspective, mandatory quarantine would obviously be a desirable measure but there are wider implications and wider considerations for Government in decision-making around the issue of mandatory quarantine,” he said.
“From our perspective, anyone coming into this country should be restricting their movements.”
Meanwhile new research carried out on behalf of the Department of Health, found that nearly 40% of the population now believes the worst of the pandemic is still ahead of us.
Dr Glynn said that does not have to be the case.
"Simple measures like hand washing, physical distancing, face coverings in appropriate settings, cough/sneeze etiquette and watching out for symptoms are the crucial elements in suppressing COVID-19,” he said.
The same study found that 81% of people who use public transport say they wear a face covering all the time, with 13% saying they wear one most of the time.
Meanwhile, 26% of people said they wear one every time they go shopping and 29% say they do so most of the time while shopping.
More than three quarters of people (78%) now think that there will be a second wave of the virus – up 30% since June.
Dr Siobhan Ni Bhriain, Consultant Psychiatrist and Integrated Care Lead at the HSE said: “As we see more cases and clusters emerge it is important that anyone experiencing symptoms isolates and contacts their GP.
“The aim is to find all cases of COVID-19 in Ireland and to isolate and contact trace them. Early reporting of symptoms and prompt testing helps us achieve this.”
