LAST UPDATE | 14 Apr 2020

HEALTH OFFICIALS HAVE this evening confirmed that a further 41 people diagnosed with Covid-19 have died in Ireland.

Officials also confirmed that 548 new cases were reported by Irish labs, while German labs testing the Irish backlog reported a further 284 cases.

In all, 406 people have now died from Covid-19 in Ireland and there are 11,479 confirmed cases.

Meanwhile, gardaí have interviewed an Irish man in Roscommon related to the suspected laundering of €1.5 million in this jurisdiction, connected to an international Covid-19 fraud investigation. 

Internationally, movement restrictions in France have been extended until next month, and US President Donald Trump has dismissed rumours he is going to fire his top medical advisor on the coronavirus pandemic as he clashed with journalists once again.

Here are today’s Covid-19 main points:

• Health officials have announced that 41 people have died from Covid-19 in Ireland. There are now a total of 11,479 cases of the coronavirus here. 
• The National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) met today to review Covid-19 clusters in nursing homes as well as the fact a minority of people tested were incorrectly told they didn’t have the virus. 
• Ten more people have died of Covid-19 in Northern Ireland, bringing the death toll there to 134. A further 85 cases brings the total confirmed number there to 1,967.
• The Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection has issued payments to 533,000 people who applied for the Covid-19 pandemic unemployment payment.
• Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald confirmed that yesterday she received a positive diagnosis for Covid-19. 
• Gardaí have interviewed an Irish man in Roscommon related to the suspected laundering of €1.5 million in this jurisdiction, connected to an international Covid-19 face-mask scam. 
• Over the weekend, gardaí encountered 144 Covid-19 related incidents that started as potential breaches of the regulations, but other offences were disclosed. These included house parties, street parties and non-essential travel. 
• Gardaí also said they were forced to use new powers given to them to tackle the coronavirus crisis on seven different occasions over the Easter weekend. 
• There has been a slight increase in the number of Covid-19 clusters in Ireland – up from 383 on 10 April to 401 on 11 April, according to figures from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre.  
• The pandemic will have a “severe” impact on Irish food businesses, according to a new report from Bord Bia. 
• Age Action, an advocacy group for older people, has called on Health Minister Simon Harris to ensure there is a nationally coordinated response to manage the impact of Covid-19 on home-care provision.
• Alone, an organisation which supports older people, is urging members of the public to reach out by phone or through other technology to older people in the community who may be feeling isolated while cocooning.
• HSE CEO Paul Reid has said the backlog of Covid-19 testing has been reduced from 35,000 to 11,000 and will be eradicated by the end of this week.
• Reid also said the availability of gowns for healthcare workers is a “significant issue” and will remain so until a further delivery of personal protective equipment (PPE) arrives from China.  
• The HSE is not going ahead with a purported €7.4 million deal to buy 350 medical ventilators from a Dublin-based company, the High Court heard today.
• Health Minister Simon Harris has said a number of factors, including ICU capacity and the reproduction rate of the virus in Ireland, will determine the state of play after the government begins to ease back restrictions.
• Major doubt has been cast on whether or not the 2020 GAA Championships will go ahead.

Here are today’s Covid-19 main international points:

• The worldwide number of Covid-19 cases is nearing two million and there are now more than 10,000 deaths in New York alone. The total figure around the world hit one million 12 days ago. 
• The UK has recorded another 778 deaths from Covid-19, bringing the total number of people to have died from the virus to 12,107. 
• French President Emmanuel Macron has announced he is extending Covid-19 movement restrictions in France until 11 May. People have been ordered to stay at home except to buy food, go to work, seek medical care or get exercise.
• US President Donald Trump has dismissed rumours he is going to fire his top medical advisor on the coronavirus pandemic as he clashed with journalists over his administration’s response to the pandemic once again. More than 23,000 people have died from Covid-19 in the US.
• UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has said there are some “positive signs” from the latest data that show the UK is “starting to win this struggle” against coronavirus but warned: “We are still not past the peak.” 
• The International Monetary Fund has announced immediate debt relief for 25 “vulnerable” countries to help them free up funds to fight the coronavirus pandemic.
• More than 117 million children are at risk of missing out on measles vaccines globally as Covid-19 surges, the World Health Organization and others have warned. 
• The first UN solidarity flight departed Addis Ababa carrying vital Covid-19 medical supplies to all African nations.

Comments are closed as one story relates to an ongoing Garda investigation.