My Department, through the Office of the Chief Medical Officer, together with colleagues in the HSE and the National Virus Reference Laboratory, continues to monitor the epidemiological profile of COVID-19 carefully.
With regard to mask wearing, the current public health advice states that, as a continuing critical component of our collective and layered response, mask wearing is advised on public transport and in healthcare settings. Mask wearing is also advised based on individual risk assessment, particularly while disease incidence is high. Anyone who wishes to wear a mask should not be discouraged from doing so.
The Office of the Chief Medication Officer continues to keep me apprised of the situation and provides advice as required. In the interests of transparency, my Department has published recent briefings provided to me by the Chief Medical Officer:
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