1,296 new cases of coronavirus have been confirmed and 6 more patients with the virus have died.
The Chief Medical Officer says we have now returned to the very high levels of COVID-19 circulating in the community that we haven't seen since the peak of Wave Two of this disease.
Dr. Tony Holohon's describing it as very concerning.
“For the second day in a row we are reporting more than a thousand confirmed cases of COVID-19.
"Within a few short weeks of easing measures at the beginning of December, we have now returned to the very high levels of COVID-19 circulating in the community that we have not seen since the peak of Wave Two of this disease. This is very concerning."
There is now a total of 85,394 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ireland.
“While today is a positive day with the arrival of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine (Comirnaty), it does not mean that we can relax our adherence to public health measures.”
“We must continue to stay at home, avoid social contact where possible, avoid visiting friends and family and not have visitors to our homes. Our adherence to public health advice will remain our best defence against this disease and help us protect our vulnerable loved ones from the effects of COVID-19.
There have been a total of 2,200 COVID-19 related deaths in Ireland.
