COVID-19 death toll reaches 769
A further 49 COVID-19 patients have died in the Republic taking the death toll to 769.
Meanwhile, 631 new cases have been confirmed, taking the total to 16,671.
At a briefing this evening, the Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan said 10 deaths previously linked to the virus have now been classed as unrelated and the new death toll reflects the change.
He said just over half the deaths (386) recorded in the country so far occurred in a hospital setting, with 6.5% occurring in the Intensive Care Unit.
Some 84% if the people that have died were suffering from underlying health issues.
Childcare plan for health workers “worse than irrelevant”
The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation has warned that the Government’s childcare plan for health workers “does nothing” for the vast majority of nurses and midwives.
The Taoiseach Leo Varadkar this afternoon said officials had approved a plan to provide paid leave to public sector staff whose partners are healthcare workers.
He said the plan would be put into action in the coming weeks but admitted “it only really works” for households that have two public sector workers.
In a statement, INMO General Secretary, Phil Ní Sheaghdha, said the current plan is “worse than irrelevant.”
Face mask policy rolled out across HSE
A new national policy is to come into force, which says face masks are to be worn in all settings for any healthcare workers providing care within two metres of a patient.
The Irish Nurses & Midwives Organisation (INMO) says it welcomes the change, which also applies to workers who come within two metres of each other for more than 15 minutes.
In practice, the INMO says this will mean nearly all frontline healthcare workers will wear face masks.
It says until now, many parts of the health service did not require or permit staff in all areas to wear this form of personal protective equipment (PPE).
A number of Irish music festivals planned for this summer have now been cancelled as a result of coronavirus restrictions which will remain in place through August.
Organisers of the National Ploughing Championships, meanwhile, say they're 'closely monitoring' the situation and 'will act in the best interest of the country' when making any decision about this year's event.
Yesterday, the Government confirmed that no mass gatherings of 5,000 people or more will be considered until at least the end of August.
It has now been confirmed by promoters that a number of this year's large music festivals won't go ahead over the coming months.
Government made ‘very big push’ to delay PSC report
A UN expert has said the Government here made a 'very big push' to delay the publication of his letter raising concerns about the implementation of the Public Services Card.
Yesterday, a letter from UN Special Rapporteur Philip Alston stated the steps required to obtain the card can be a "nightmare" because of the bureaucracy involved.
It said the disadvantaged have to jump through a number of hoops to prove their identity, including providing documents which many find hard to access.
Philip Alston also said the Government’s assertion that the card is ‘mandatory’ but ‘not compulsory’ was a “classic example of doublespeak".
