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TAOISEACH MICHEÁL MARTIN has told Dáil that a high-level task force has been established to oversee the deployment of Covid-19 vaccines in Ireland once they are approved by statutory authorities.
Martin said that targeting the people most vulnerable to Covid-19 will be the government’s immediate priority.
The high-level working group on vaccines will be tasked with coordinating preparations and ensuring the nationwide deployment of a Covid-19 vaccine when one is safe and ready to be distributed, Martin said.
In August, the government established a vaccine strategy committee under the chairmanship of the Department of Health, while the HSE created its own group.
However, the Cabinet decided yesterday that a “whole government group” is now needed, which will gain experience from outside the government regarding the organization of logistics operations.
Who is in the working group?
The group will be chaired by Professor Brian MacCraith from DCU. Medical Director Tony Holohan will also be on the vaccine task force, as will Paul Reid, HSE CEO.
Senior Official and Chairman of the Senior Officials Group on Covid-19, Liz Canavan, Barry Lowry, Director of Government Information; and Paul Quinn, director of government procurement, will also be part of the task force.
In addition, there will be a nominee yet to be confirmed from the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation, who will be an expert in cold chain logistics and an expert in project management.
Earlier this week, Pfizer and BioNTech announced that their Covid-19 vaccine was 90% effective in their large-scale phase 3 trial.
It has been hailed as a “watershed moment” and welcomed by scientists, health officials and world leaders.
The vaccine requires two doses. This means twice as many visits to a vaccination center, or wherever it is administered. At best, this would lead to resource and administrative challenges in first world countries, but presents a much more serious barrier for less developed countries.
Another serious obstacle is the temperature at which this vaccine should be stored: -80 degrees.
This issue was raised today by Labor leader Alan Kelly in the Dáil.
The Taoiseach said Kelly was correct in identifying the logistical issues surrounding the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in terms of the storage requirement. He said the high-level working group on vaccines will be tasked with coordinating preparations in this area.
Vaccines under consideration
However, Martin said it is not the only vaccine in the works.
He explained that Ireland is part of a pre-purchase agreement with the European Commission.
The allocation of access to vaccine doses between Member States will be decided according to an established population distribution.
There are currently no Covid-19 vaccines licensed for use in Europe, but there is a portfolio of seven potential vaccines, the Taoiseach explained.
Advance purchase agreements have been issued for three of these vaccines and Ireland has opted for each one. These include:
- AstraZeneca, which is associated with the University of Oxford
- Janssen (owned by Johnson & Johnson)
- Sanofi Pasteur: This will be formalized when the current phase of clinical trials of the vaccine (scheduled for late December / early January) is completed.
The Taoiseach said the emerging news is that the Commission is about to sign, if not already signed, an agreement with Pfizer and BioNTech.
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“The President of the Commission has been leading this process and I have contacted her about it. It has been debated in the meetings of the European Council. Ultimately, the Commission’s goal is to reach an agreement with seven consortia.
“There is enough funding throughout the European system for deals with six consortia and it will probably go to a seventh. We will need the full range of options throughout 2021 because the next issue will be manufacturing.
“All of those deals include specific dose allocations which mean we would get about 1% of whatever the European procurement is … That will be very important to us in terms of targeting the vulnerable and those who would be a priority in terms of reception. of a vaccine, ”Martin said.
Last month, a survey showed that more than half of the people in Ireland would take a Covid-19 vaccine if there was one.
The survey, conducted by Ipsos MRBI for the Irish Pharmaceutical Health Association (IPHA) found that 55% would take the vaccine, while 33% said they were not sure. 12% of those surveyed said they would not get vaccinated.
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