PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICIALS have reported an additional 2,100 positive PCR cases of Covid-19 in Ireland in the past 24 hours.

The Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) also reported 5,475 PCR-confirmed cases of the virus yesterday, as well as 4,400 PCR-confirmed cases on Saturday.

This brings the total number of PCR-confirmed cases of Covid-19 since Friday to 11,975.

In addition, there were 7,271 positive antigen tests reported through the HSE website on Friday, 6,853 on Saturday and 5,791 yesterday.

This brings the combined total of antigens to 19,915.

Combining the two figures leads to an overall total of 31,890 cases of Covid-19 being reported since last Friday.

But the HPSC said the PCR-positive case numbers from yesterday are “artificially low” due to a technical issue.

It said an additional 2,193 positive PCR testes were added in after midnight but not included in the figures released today. They will be reported in tomorrow’s figures. 

As of 8am today, 1,042 Covid-19 patients are hospitalised, of whom 42 are in ICU.

The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) has warned that the high number of patients without a bed and the current level of Covid-19 cases in hospitals is a “recipe for disaster”. 

“The fact that we have 544 patients on trolleys today and over 1,042 patients in hospitals with Covid-19 almost two years to the day that the virus first reached our shores is a recipe for disaster,” INMO General Secretary Phil Ní Sheaghdha said.

“If our past experience of Covid and high numbers of patients on trolleys has taught us anything, we will be seeing the impacts of this on our health system for many weeks to come,” she said.