Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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1013. To ask the Minister for Health if he will report on the reason full Covid-19 data is not being published in particular the data on test numbers, positivity rates and data on Covid-19 cases in hospitals; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41549/21]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The Health Service Executive’s (HSE) IT systems suffered a major cyber-attack on Friday 14th May 2021. This led to disruption of regular COVID-19 data updates.

In relation to test numbers and positivity rates, the cyber-attack did not lead to any pause in the HSE’s weekly updates. All HSE weekly ‘Covid-19 Testing and Contact Tracing Updates’, with data on test numbers and positivity, are available here: www.hse.ie/eng/services/news/newsfeatures/covid19-updates/covid-19-testing-contact-tracing-updates.html

The automated data transfer processes which updated the daily test numbers and positivity rates on the COVID-19 Data Hub: covid-19.geohive.ie/ were disrupted by the cyber-attack and these updates were paused. Full reporting of testing and positivity rates was restored to the COVID-19 Data Hub in mid-August with the full back-series of data for the period of the disruption also made available. This data is updated daily Monday-Saturday covid-19.geohive.ie/pages/hospitals-icu--testing

In relation to data on Covid-19 cases in hospitals, reporting of this data in the Department of Health’s daily statement resumed shortly after the cyber-attack. This was based on a manual data collection process implemented by the HSE as an interim solution. On 17th July, the HSE resumed publication of the Daily Operations Update report www.hse.ie/eng/services/news/newsfeatures/covid19-updates/coronavirus-daily-operations-updates.html with details of Covid-19 on Covid-19 cases in hospitals and ICU.

Daily updates of Covid-19 cases in hospital also resumed on the COVID-19 Data Hub in mid-July, with a full back series of data for the duration impacted by the cyber-attack covid-19.geohive.ie/pages/hospitals-icu--testing. This data is updated daily Monday-Sunday