Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan has said that the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as the necessary public health measures implemented to protect the public, have had a disproportionate impact on older age cohorts.
In an update this evening, Dr Holohan said he was mindful of the concerns older people would have on how to socialise safely as pandemic restrictions are further eased in the coming weeks, especially during a period of darker evenings and colder weather.
The Chief Medical Officer's comments came after a further 1,224 new cases of Covid-19 were confirmed this evening. There are currently 278 people being treated in hospital for the virus, which is up 17 on yesterday.
Of those, 63 are in intensive care, which is down three on yesterday.
In Northern Ireland, a further 889 cases of the virus were confirmed, while another five death were also recorded.
Despite the disproportionate impact, he said, older age cohorts had been vaccinated to a "very high level".
While vaccination remains our best means of protection against COVID-19, there are additional things that you can do to prevent transmission of the disease. pic.twitter.com/MVyC9xCsEp
— Dr Tony Holohan (@CMOIreland) September 19, 2021
"It is heartening to see the high levels of vaccine uptake among all cohorts, but particularly among our over-65s. The Department of Health's most recent research shows that 96% of respondents aged 55 years and older state that they are fully protected through vaccination," he said.
"While it may be still possible for people who are vaccinated to pick up this disease when we still have such high levels of disease in the community, these vaccines are especially good at limiting the likelihood of that becoming a severe infection that would, for example, require admission to hospital or to intensive care."
Dr Holohan also strongly urged anyone who has not yet received a Covid-19 vaccine to do so as soon as possible in order to protect themselves and others, saying there are still some who have not yet taken up the opportunity to get vaccinated.
"There are still some people who haven't yet taken up the opportunity of vaccination, or who have delayed receiving a second dose for various reasons," Dr Holohan said this evening in a statement.
"I strongly encourage anyone who is in this position to ensure they get fully vaccinated as soon as possible in order to best protect themselves and those around them."
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From tomorrow, eased measures will include a gradual return to workplaces, as well as changes to organised indoor and outdoor group activities.
In a statement, Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise Leo Varadkar described tomorrow as a "big day for thousands of businesses who are opening for the first time since the pandemic and thousands more people getting back to work".
From tomorrow, indoor dance, yoga, pilates studios, art classes and indoor sports and fitness classes will be permitted for up to 100 people provided participants are fully vaccinated or have recently recovered from Covid-19.
All restrictions on outdoor group activities will also be removed. The lifting of almost all remaining restrictions has been earmarked for 22 October.
Office workers, who largely worked from home during the pandemic, may also return from tomorrow in what the Government has termed a "phased return".
Mr Varadkar said: "The pandemic has taught us what's possible in terms of remote working. It transformed the world of work overnight. I hope we can learn something from what worked for workers and employers during that time and incorporate it post-Covid.
"We really want to see remote working become a permanent fixture of Irish working life. I hope employers are speaking to their staff to figure out what works best for them and the business as this phased return begins."
The Tánaiste credited the country's vaccination programme for allowing the Government to be in a position to ease measures further.
He said: "We are now one of the best in the world for vaccine uptake, 90% of people over 16 are now double-jabbed. It's a testament to the Irish people for trusting the science, trusting our health care professionals and protecting each other."
