The acting Chief Medical Officer says the role of the individual has 'never been more important.'
The vast majority of new Covid-19 cases have been Irish to Irish transmissions, according to the acting chief medical officer.
There had been concern that people travelling to Ireland from abroad were the cause of the increase in cases.
85 new cases were announced yesterday, the highest number in two months.
Dr Ronan Glynn says individuals need to play their part to keep the virus under control.
''The vast majority of are Irish to Irish transmission and to a certain extent there have been a number of side debates over the past number of weeks that I think have distracted from the main messages, he said.
''It can lead to the people thinking their own role as individuals is less important, when in fact it's never been more important''.
"Figures demonstrate how quickly Covid-19 can re-emerge in our country''.
Yesterday, 85 new cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed in Ireland, as well as one further death.
39% of the cases are associated with close contacts of a confirmed case.
26 of the new cases are located in Kildare, 18 in Dublin, 11 in Clare, nine in Laois, seven in Limerick, four in Meath and the rest spread across a number of different counties.
68% were found in people below 45 years of age.
Speaking on Thursday, acting Chief Medical Officer Ronan Glynn said: "Today's figures demonstrate how quickly Covid-19 can re-emerge in our country.
"We are now at a crucial point in our response to Covid-19. Over the coming days it is vital that everyone continues to avoid large crowds, physically distance, wear face coverings where appropriate and wash hands regularly."
There has now been a total of 26,027 confirmed cases, and 1,763 deaths in relation to Covid-19.
