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Ireland is moving from a short-term emergency response approach to a medium-term approach to managing risk and repairing the damage that COVID-19 has inflicted on society.
A Framework for Restrictive Measures has been developed to help us to go about our daily lives as much as possible, while managing the behaviour of the virus.
Download Resilience and Recovery 2020-2021: Plan for Living with COVID-19 here.
The latest information, advice and guidelines issued by the Government will be published here and updated daily.
The framework consists of 5 Levels:
Click on each level for more information. The lower levels of the framework will be activated when there is low incidence of the disease, with isolated outbreaks, low community transmission. The higher levels will be used to deal with higher incidences of the disease.
Current status:
Ireland is currently at Level 5. At Level 5, the public health risk means that you will be asked to stay at home, except for travel for work, education or other essential purposes, or to take exercise within 5km of home. There will be no gatherings other than small numbers at funerals and weddings.
Your guide to the changes:
In your home or garden
No visitors are permitted in private homes or gardens except for essential family reasons such as providing care to children, elderly or vulnerable people, or as part of a support bubble.
Other settings outside your home or garden
No social or family gatherings should take place in other settings.
People will be required to stay at home except for travel for work, education or other essential purposes, and will be permitted to take exercise within 5 km of home.
You can travel outside 5 kilometres of home for the following reasons:
Those aged over 70 years and over and the medically vulnerable should exercise judgement regarding the extent to which they engage with others and in activities outside home. Advice for people at higher risk from Covid-19 can be found here.
Suspended, aside from critical and compassionate circumstances.
If you have any of these symptoms, you should behave as if you have the virus and self-isolate. People in your household will need to restrict their movements. You may also need to be tested for COVID-19. Getting tested for COVID-19 is free. If you're confused about the differences between symptoms of COVID-19, the cold and flu, the HSE has more information.
Family Carers Ireland has produced an Emergency Care Scheme in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. Please click here to find out more.
For a guide to Covid-19 social welfare supports for family carers including a list of FAQs, please click here.
For guidance on cocooning to protect people over 70 years and those extremely medically vulnerable from Covid-19, please click here. Note advice for family carers (section 10).
For guidance on reducing the risk of Covid-19 infection for Older People and Others at Risk of Severe Diseases, please click here.
Also, Guidance for Health and Social Care Workers who visit homes can be found here. Please note that while this is not aimed at family carers, a lot of the advice is very relevant.
An FAQ document for people with disabilities and family carers (prepared jointly by the HSE, Family Carers Ireland and Inclusion Ireland) can be found here.
As part of the Government response to the COVID-19 crisis, your local authority (council) has established a COVID-19 Community Call Forum. Your local forum works with State agencies and community and voluntary groups to provide supports or services to any vulnerable person who needs them.
Your forum brings together different organisations to provide important services like: collection and delivery of essential items like food, ‘meals-on-wheels’,
household items, fuel or medicine (in line with guidance) support if you are experiencing social isolation or are cocooning
If you need help, if you know someone who needs help, or if you would like to offer help, please use the numbers or email for your local authority (council) as listed in this leaflet.