“The reproductive number is now estimated to be between 0.4 and 0.7.”
Five more people with Covid-19 have died in Ireland bringing the total number of Covid-19 related deaths to 1,664.
38 new cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed to the Health Protection Surveillance Centre as of midnight on Wednesday.
This brings the total number of confirmed cases in Ireland since the beginning of the outbreak to 25,142.
Speaking at the Department of Health on Thursday, Professor Philip Nolan, Chair of the NPHET Irish Epidemiological Modelling Advisory Group, said that the Phase One easing of restrictions had not negatively impacted the reproductive number of the virus.
He said that while it is possible that the reproductive number of the virus has risen marginally since last week, it was difficult to measure when the numbers of new cases each day were small.
“The reproductive number is now estimated to be between 0.4 and 0.7,” Professor Nolan said.
“The easing of restrictions in Phase One has not negatively impacted the r-number, in no small part thanks to the collective behaviours of our population in preventing resurgence of the disease.”
Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan encouraged the public to continue following public health guidelines.
“Further progress has been made throughout May in suppressing the spread of Covid-19,” Dr Holohan said.
“A downward trend is evident in the number of hospitalisations, ICU admissions and reported deaths.
“Adherence to public health personal behaviours (hand washing, physical distancing, cough/sneeze etiquette) is essential in avoiding an upsurge of infection in the future.”
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