'Entire health system is under very serious pressure', says Paul Reid as he reveals booster numbers

A total of 490,000 people have had their booster vaccine, HSE CEO Paul Reid confirmed on radio this morning.

Speaking on RTE's Morning Ireland, he explained the difficulty in the rollout as compared to the first two doses, due to the fact that a number of months need to be left between the second and third dose.

The CEO confirmed that 4,400 health care workers are positive for Covid or are deemed a close contact at the moment. 

"The entire health system, both hospitals and community healthcare, are now under very serious pressure," due to Covid-19, he said. He said hospitals will move to crisis footing as cases surge.

In the last two weeks, hospitalisations have increased by 40pc for Covd-19 patients, with a similar trend for numbers in ICU. 

Around 25,000 Covid-19 swabs are being taken a day.

He confirmed that referrals through GPS and symptomatic people are being prioritized for Covid-19 tests.