Update 19 August 2021: Response to the COVID-19 vaccination roll-out described as “phenomenal”
The response to the COVID-19 vaccine roll-out has been described as ‘phenomenal’ by the Health Service Executive’s (HSE) National Lead for the Vaccine Programme Damien McCallion. He told RTÉ's Morning Ireland programme that Ireland has ‘the highest rate in Europe nearly’ in relation to vaccine uptake. On 17 August 2021, the head of the Health Service Executive CEO Paul Reid reported that over 6.4 million vaccines had been administered, with 82% of adults fully vaccinated and 90% partially vaccinated.
On 17 August 2021, Paul Reid also reported that there continues to be ‘great progress’ on the vaccination of 12–15-year-olds. He said that nearly 100,000 people have registered for a vaccine and 47,000 have been administered. On 11 August 2021 the online registration portal for children aged 12-15 was opened, with some centres beginning to vaccinate this cohort on 13 August 2021, with the main rollout beginning the following day. The children, who need the consent of a parent or guardian to get vaccinated, are receiving Pfizer or Moderna jabs. There are around 280,000 children in that age group in Ireland.
On 15 August 2021 Paul Reid has said that Ireland will cease further, for now, deliveries of AstraZeneca and Janssen vaccines. The HSE said it follows advice from the National Immunisation Advisory Committee which found that Ireland has ‘surer supplies’ of mRNA vaccines, and that the decision was made in the context of the ‘risk posed by the Delta variant in conjunction with the availability of mRNA vaccines’. On 18 August 2021, Paul Reid also reported that the biggest weekly delivery of vaccines had been received. ‘More than 540,000 doses were delivered, hugely boosted by the first tranche of a total of 700,000 Romanian reallocated vaccines’.
The Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly, has said that he has received advice from the National Immunisation Advisory Committee that vaccines can be mixed in certain circumstances. He said it is good news for people who have received one dose of AstraZeneca and, for various reasons, have a preference for an mRNA vaccine for their second dose.