The mean end-to-end completion time of Covid-19 tests is now just over two days.

CEO of the HSE, Paul Reid, has said that 13,000 Covid-19 tests were completed in Ireland on Friday (21 August), the highest daily number to date. In a post on Twitter, Reid added that the mean end-to-end completion time - the time taken from referral for a test to the completion of contact tracing calls – has now been reduced to just over two days. 98% of tests being carried out, Reid said, are negative, meaning that the vast majority of tests would have been returned in less than two days. https://twitter.com/paulreiddublin/status/1297086778596360192 According to Ireland’s Covid-19 data hub, 61,565 Covid-19 tests were carried out in Ireland in the seven days up to this Friday, an average of 8,795 tests per day. It was also confirmed on Friday that restrictive measures applied in Kildare earlier this month would be extended until 6 September. Similar measures recently applied to Laois and Offaly following a surge in Covid-19 cases in the three counties no longer apply. 79 new cases of Covid-19 were confirmed on Friday evening, 73% of which were related to people under the age of 45. 30 of those cases were associated with outbreaks of Covid-19 or were close contacts of a confirmed case, while 21 cases were identified as being as a result of community transmission. 43 of the 79 cases announced on Friday were in Dublin, while there were nine in Kildare, six apiece in Cork and Tipperary, with the remaining cases in Clare, Donegal, Laois, Limerick, Louth, Mayo, Roscommon, Wexford and Wicklow. There have been a total of 27,755 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Ireland to date and 1,776 deaths as a result. Speaking on Friday, Acting Chief Medical Officer Ronan Glynn said: “Firstly I would like to thank the people of Kildare, Laois and Offaly. You have shown an incredible example of solidarity and social responsibility by following the enhanced public health advice for your region. Your actions have saved lives. “The epidemiological situation in Kildare means that we must extend the public health measures for a further two weeks. While there is some cause for optimism, the seven and 14-day incidence rates in Kildare remain very high. Evidence suggests that the measures are working, but more time is required to reduce the number of cases in Kildare. “We as a nation must show solidarity with Kildare in our collective efforts, especially over the next two weeks, by working together to suppress this virus. We can protect each other by following the public health advice. I am asking all households across Ireland to play your part, reduce your social contacts, wash your hands, keep a two metres distance from each other and wear a face covering in shops and on public transport. “These actions are vital to protect our families and safeguard those who are most vulnerable to the disease.”