The vaccine could be available in Ireland from January

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The government has said that the Pfizer BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine could be available in Ireland in early January, if approved by the European Medicines Agency in the coming weeks.

The Taoiseach told the Dáil that the infrastructure to implement the vaccine was already in place.

Mass immunization is expected to begin in the UK next week, after Britain today became the first Western country to approve the vaccine for general use.

Tonight, Mr. Martin told a party meeting that Covid-19 vaccines will be administered free of charge to people across the country.

The Taoiseach told the Fianna Fáil Parliamentary Party that there is “light at the end of the tunnel” and that 2021 will be “a different year when we get out of Covid-19.”

He said healthcare workers, the elderly and residents of nursing homes will be prioritized in a sequenced program, and “we will work hard logistically to implement it.”

Martin said there is broad public support for the lifting of the Level Five restrictions and that people need a break and a break.

He said the government promised that the country would exit Level Five after six weeks, and it has delivered.

The health service has spent more than 2.5 billion euros to tackle Covid-19, bringing total health spending this year to 20.4 billion euros.

The figures were revealed today by Health Minister Stephen Donnelly, who appeared before the Oireachtas Health Committee.

He told members that the Executive of the Health Service has predicted that this year 920 million euros will be spent on personal protective equipment (PPE).

According to Donnelly, it was the most significant medium-term cost incurred by the Department.

PPE stock levels at the end of the year will be equivalent to the 12-year supply.

The tests and contact tracing cost 276 million euros in total, delivering almost two million tests.

Minister Donnelly also told politicians that Ireland is ready to receive 15.6 million doses of vaccines, if approved.

He gave a breakdown to the committee: Astrazeneca – 3.3 million, Janssen – 2.2 million, Sanofi – 3.3 million,
Pfizer / Biontech: 2.3 million; Modern: 875,000; CureVac: no details yet.

Ireland has spent 117 million euros on Covid-19 vaccines.

Minister Donnelly said he understands that Ireland is “locked in” to pay for vaccines, regardless of whether they are approved or not.

It’s not necessarily true that the first approved vaccine is the one everyone gets, he added.

Donnelly told Sinn Féin’s David Cullinane that he understood that different vaccines are better suited to different people, based on their age and other factors.

Congressman Cullinane asked if the GP, pharmacy and other administrative costs will be covered.

The minister said that while no decision has been made, he expects all costs to be covered, similar to the flu vaccine.

He said “we can’t have any situation where there might be an issue of access being an issue because of affordability.”

Meanwhile, the Tánaiste said it was “reasonably certain” that a Covid-19 vaccine would start rolling out in January.

Leo Varadkar also told the Fine Gael Parliamentary Party that a communication campaign is vital to overcome doubts about vaccines.

Widespread immunity in the population would be achieved next September or October, he said, adding that vaccines will have a significant impact much sooner.

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The chairman of the National Advisory Committee on Immunization has said that we can be confident of the safety and efficacy of Covid-19 vaccines when available, due to the scrutiny they are under.

Speaking on RTÉ’s Six One News, Professor Karina Butler said that the EU, the UK and the FDA in the US, as well as a number of other agencies in various countries, have been independently analyzing data from the process of development of the vaccine.

He said that a lot of work had already been done on these types of vaccines before this pandemic, and the science is already there.

Public health physician Dr. Gabriel Scally said there is room for discussion about which groups of people should be prioritized for the vaccine.

Speaking about RTÉ’s Drivetime, he said that if supplies are limited, we should implement the vaccine in the areas where the incidence is highest.

Dr. Scally added that we know that the vaccine protects people from the serious effects of the disease, but we don’t yet know if it prevents them from transmitting it.

Additional reporting by Tommy Meskill



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