A Clare GP has played down concern that Clare could become the next county to go into lockdown.
The Health Minister has warned that more localised lockdowns could be on the cards to stop a spike in Covid-19 cases.
Former Clare TD, Dr Michael Harty doesn’t think the current surge in this county will result in lockdown, however, as long as people here don’t become complacent when it comes to following health advice.
The Health Minister says a new colour-coded system on the status of Covid-19 could help stop the country going into full lockdown again.
The details are being finalised by health officials and it’ll be launched in the coming weeks.
Counties where some restrictions have been re-imposed will be status orange, with areas with low rates of transmission given status yellow.
Blue will only be for when there’s an effective vaccine or treatment and nd red would be if a full lockdown has to be imposed again.
But Minister Stephen Donnelly hopes that can be avoided.
Clare has recorded 39 cases in just over a fortnight, 5 of those were confirmed last night, while Clare GAA has also confirmed that there are now 6 cases linked with Cratloe GAA Club.
It emerged earlier this week that Clare has the highest incidence of COVID cases per 100,000 population, outside of the three counties in the Midlands; Kildare, Offaly and Laois, where localised restrictions have been imposed.
It’s sparked fears in some quarters that Clare could be the next county to go into lockdown.
Former Clare TD, Kilmihil GP Dr Michael Harty has warned it’s crucial that people continue to follow health advice to curb the spread of the virus, particularly when it comes to wearing masks.
But he says clusters in this county are not similar to outbreaks witnessed in the three lockdown counties and he doesn’t believe Clare will suffer the same fate.
