Harris: 'We are in very active talks with the companies that produce ventilators'

Mr Harris said the authorities would try to continue the policy of community testing and contact tracing for as long as was practical.

Minister for Health Simon Harris has said that the government is engaging with the IDA and the HSE in discussions with the companies that manufacture ventilators to ensure an adequate supply for hospitals.

“We need them and we need them to make them available,” he told RTÉ radio’s Today with Séan O’Rourke show.

At present the HSE has 500 ventilators and 1,000 respiratory machines, he said. Private hospital facilities that provide 164 ventilation rooms are also being looked at, added the Minister.

“We are in very active talks with the companies that produce ventilators.”

Mr Harris said he was really proud that community testing was continuing in Ireland, as some other countries had stopped doing so.

“I am really proud that we are continuing to do community testing, some countries have stopped it,” Mr Harris said.

“It will mean people in Ireland are going to have to wait a few days for a test. But why we are doing this is because the World Health Organisation said ‘test, test, test’ – the more of this virus we can find, isolate and contact anyone who might have been in contact with it, the greater a chance you have of slowing down the spread and, if we can slow down the spread of this virus, we can save lives.

“We will reach a point, every country will reach a point, where you have to say you’ve got to slow down community testing, but we are nowhere near there and we want to keep going for as long as possible.”

Mr Harris added that he is conscious that this is a time where people are really nervous, and he wants people to know that any emergency measures being brought in will only be used when absolutely necessary.

“I can’t stop this virus being in Ireland, but I hope to stop a lot of people getting sick at the same time.”

By the end of this month, public health experts will be able to say whether the measures in place are working and are reducing the number of cases, or if more needs to be done.

Mr Harris said that the extra people being currently recruited by the HSE will be paid full time, some will be offered full time permanent jobs while others will be offered contracts of at least three months duration.

The virus affects everyone and not just the elderly, he said, pointing to figures released on Wednesday night which showed that two thirds of cases in Ireland so far have been under the age of 55. “The virus affects all people no matter their age.”

Minister Harris says he is satisfied with the amount of testing equipment available to the health service to carry out tests.

Early, it was revealed that 30,000 new coronavirus

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When asked about difficult decisions doctors might be required to make Mr Harris said ethical guidelines are being drawn up for doctors with regard to Covid-19.

“Everyone in Ireland is going to be looked after with dignity and respect,” he said. If people want to support frontline staff, they can do so by adhering to the necessary measures which will ease the pressure on the health service.

“The things we do today will impact on that,” he said.

People need to know that if a real effort to adhere to public advice is successful, the projected 15,000 cases by the end of this month can be lessened.

On 'cocooning' people, Mr Harris said he doesn't know when such a measure will be needed. “If we arrive at a point when medical experts decide the best course of action is to keep elderly people in their homes, then we will do so, but we doesn't know when that will happen.”

Mr Harris has said he is conscious of the confusion in telling people of a certain age to avoid the virus, but also asking retirees to come back into the health service. The HSE says there is a role for everyone, some of which can even be done remotely, he explained.

With regard to legislation being discussed in the Dáil today, Mr Harris said it was important to have absolute clarity and to have the necessary powers, if required, to save lives. “We want the ability to exercise proportionate powers.”

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