Health authorities in Northern Ireland have reported a further 18 deaths as a result of Covid-19, bringing the total figure to 365.
Four of the deaths occurred within the past 24 hours while the other 14 are previously unreported fatalities.
A further 87 people have tested positive for Covid-19, bringing the total number of cases to 3,623.
However according to the latest research, there have been almost 400 deaths involving Covid-19 in Northern Ireland.
The department's figures are based on patients having previously tested positive for the virus, whereas NISRA figures are based on the information entered on death certificates, filled out by medical professionals. They may or may not have previously tested positive for the virus.
Figures compiled by the Northern Ireland Statistical and Research Agency (NISRA) indicate there have been 393 deaths.
Some 109 of these deaths occurred between 18-24 April at care homes, hospitals and at home.
Most of the number for that week (63) occurred at care homes, while 40 were in hospitals and six at home.
Of the NISRA total, some 53.2% of deaths were at hospital, 40% in care homes, 5.9% at home and 0.8% at hospices.
The 161 deaths in care homes and hospices involved 57 separate establishments.
The NISRA total is higher than over the same period for deaths reported daily by the Department of Health (299).
Yesterday the department was criticised over "gaps and losses" in its data around the spread of Covid-19.
The UK Statistics Authority said there was "serious public concern" about changes made in how the data is reported during the pandemic.
Director general for regulation Ed Humpherson said: "Daily surveillance statistics should be released in a transparent, easily accessible and orderly way.
"A news release on the departmental website and Twitter are not sufficient.
"There are gaps in the data and daily time series have been lost since the statistics began to be issued through Department of Health news releases.
"These gaps and losses need to be addressed."
A daily information "dashboard" is due to go live today, an official at Stormont's Department of Health responded.
Meanwhile, separate analyses of the NISRA figures shows that the provisional number of total deaths registered in Northern Ireland in the week ending 24 April 24 (week 16) was 470, 46 more than in week 15 and 186 more than the five-year average of 284.
Over the last four weeks in total, 596 excess deaths (deaths above the average for the corresponding period in previous years) have been registered in Northern Ireland.
Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate for 128 (27.2%) of the 470 deaths registered in week 16, bringing the total number of Covid-19 related deaths registered in the calendar year 2020 to 370.
Males accounted for around half of all registered deaths (49.1%) and the 370 Covid-19 related deaths (50.3%), while those aged 75 and over accounted for two-thirds of all deaths and 75.1% of Covid-19 related deaths registered this calendar year up to 24 April.
Deputy First Minister Michelle O'Neill said there has been a lot of speculation on when lockdown rules may be relaxed.
"I want to set out very clearly today why we're not yet in a space where we can afford for people to be moving around any more than is absolutely necessary," she said.
"We need to be realistic about what we're living through, we need to accept that Covid-19 could be here for some considerable time to come. And it's important to realise that no relaxation of the current measures is without risk.
"Our priority is limiting the transmission of the virus and saving lives.
"There will be no single turning point, there will be no sweeping changes to the regulations but we also understand that people want to see light at the end of the tunnel.
"Next week we will publish our pathway to recovery."
Ms O'Neill added the pathway will be "criteria-led", not "calendar-led".
