Tomas Doherty
A further ten deaths and 617 new cases of Covid-19 were recorded in the Republic on Thursday.
Seven of the deaths occurred in April, one in March, one in February and one occurred in January.
The latest figures show 176 Covid-19 patients are in hospital, with 48 in intensive care.
Of the new cases, 236 were in Dublin, 84 in Donegal, 37 in Kildare, 34 in Tipperary, 30 in Offaly and the remaining 196 were spread across 20 other counties.
In the South East, there are 12 new cases in Waterford, 5 each in both Carlow and Wexford while Kilkenny has recorded less than 5 new cases.
Donegal has the highest incidence rate in the country at 257 cases per 100,000, followed by Offaly at 213 and Kildare at 200.
Meanwhile, people aged between 60 and 64 will be able to register online for a Covid-19 vaccination from Friday.
The HSE’s vaccine portal has been open to people between the ages of 65 and 69 since last week.
To date, more than 143,000 have registered through the online system, Health Minister Stephen Donnelly said.
He added that vaccination of this group is already under way across the country.
From Friday it will be extended to people in the 60-64 age bracket.
