When Tony Holohan and his team plotted the lockdown exit plan this week, the choice at its most basic was still lives versus livelihoods. Keeping people apartLeaving a gap is a tested method to give time to gauge the knock-on effect on virus numbers or hospitalisations of each measure. Obstacles on the roadThe dampener even before we make the journey out of lockdown is the continuing high daily level of cases. Covid-19 vaccination is protecting more older age groups from serious illness, but high numbers of those with underlying illnesses still need a first jab. Significantly, in the UK yesterday public health doctors said they were at a point where the link between cases and hospitalisations had been broken.

Source: Irish Independent April 29, 2021 01:36 UTC