The number of daily Covid-19 cases to be reported later today is expected to be close to 1,000, HSE chief Paul Reid has said.
Speaking at the HSE weekly Covid-19 briefing, Mr Reid urged the public to be “extremely cautious and protective over the next few weeks”.
He said the HSE is on a “higher alert” due to rising case numbers and hospitalisation figures, adding that a surge in cases is already happening.
Mr Reid referenced what he called a “wedge of weakness” that he said the Delta variant “will exploit”.
“What I mean by the wedge of weakness is the gap between those adults who we have fully vaccinated and those who we don’t have fully vaccinated.”
Paul Reid said the “good news” is that the “vulnerability” to Delta has been reduced by the administration of 5 million vaccines.
He said the “challenge” remains to have the remainder of adults vaccinated, adding that “our only constraint will be supply”.
On the vaccination programme, Paul Reid said the uptake “remains strong overall” with 99% of people over the age of 80 having taken the vaccine.
He said there is a 98% up-take in the age group of 70-79, 94% between 60-69, 91% between 50-59, and 84% between 40-49.
He said the HSE exceeded its target of administering 300,000 doses last week by an additional 38,000.
This week, the HSE is on track to deliver another 300,000 doses with 150,000 doses administered by the end of yesterday evening.
A further 300,000 doses will be administered next week.
