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The Cabinet will consider a strategy for the sequenced launch of Covid-19 vaccines today.
Health Minister Stephen Donnelly will describe the categories of people who will be the first to be vaccinated.
Donnelly’s cabinet memo is based on a report from the state Department of Health and the state’s National Advisory Committee on Immunizations.
It is expected to describe the groups of people who will be among the first to receive the Covid-19 vaccine.
They will include adults over 65 in long-term care facilities, healthcare workers with direct contact with Covid-19 patients, and people from the general population who are over 70 years old.
People over the age of 85 will be the first to be vaccinated, followed by those aged 80 to 84; then 75 to 79; and finally 70 to 74.
Tánaiste Leo Varadkar told Dáil last week that people who work in high-risk environments, such as meat plants, could also be included.
A high-level task force, tasked with overseeing vaccine distribution logistics, is due to publish its report on Friday.
It is understood that the Government considers a public information plan around the launch of the vaccine to be of great importance, with a particular focus on an evidence-based approach, consultations and transparency.
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Meanwhile, the deployment of a Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine in Northern Ireland has begun.
Donnelly said: “It’s a good day for the UK, it’s a great day for Northern Ireland and it’s also a good day here in the Republic.”
However, he said, despite the good news, “we cannot lower our guard.”
In the UK, a 90-year-old grandmother became the first person in the world to receive a Covid-19 vaccine outside of a clinical trial.
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