David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

In the three and a half minutes available to me, I want to raise a number of issues with the Minister of State and give her time to respond. I will put my questions as distinctly as I can and I hope to get a response. Everybody is affected by what is happening at the moment and it is causing real challenges and difficulties for every section of society. Some are more impacted by it than others. Representatives of the Psychological Society of Ireland have told me that loneliness, isolation, anxiety, stress and the economic impacts of the pandemic are causing another hidden epidemic in mental health. We would all accept that.

I want to focus on a couple of cohorts of people who need to be acknowledged when we talk about mental health and Covid. One of those groups is our front-line healthcare workers, who have gone through a hugely difficult and traumatic time. At this point in time, thousands of them are out sick. Some 7,000 healthcare workers contracted Covid-19 in the month of January alone. It is horrific. Sinn Féin has brought forward a Bill to protect those workers and make Covid-19 a notifiable occupational illness. Is that something the Government will support? We need to recognise the impacts of what is now being called long Covid, including its impact on people both physically and mentally. Is that an issue to which the Government is giving consideration?

I have a very specific question regarding the vaccine roll-out and the news yesterday that the AstraZeneca vaccine will not be used for the over-70s. That is causing a lot of confusion and will slow down the roll-out of vaccinations for people in that age group. People want to know if they will be vaccinated and there is particular concern about those most at risk. People aged over 70 are among those most at risk. Is there a revised vaccination timetable? How can the Minister of State address the concerns of those aged over 70 who are listening to the news that the vaccine they were told would be the best for them and would allow them to get vaccinated more quickly will not now be used? What impact will that have on their mental health?

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