Michael McDowell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I wish to proposed an amendment to the Order of Business that No. 5 be taken before No. 1. I wish to draw the House's attention to the following health matter and I ask the Leader to ask the Minister for Health to make himself available to deal with this issue, as he has other business in this House today. I refer to the need for the HSE and the Department of Health to put in place a comprehensive programme for influenza inoculation right across the country. We know there is a significant danger of flu coinciding with spikes in Covid infections and that the symptoms of some flus and Covid are easily confused. Some scientific material also indicates that the flu complicates Covid conditions and makes the Covid infection more dangerous. Given that there is a seasonal aspect to flu and that, ordinarily, there is a significant influenza problem from October to January or February, it is essential that the health authorities extend inoculation services to the maximum possible extent.

A plan is currently afoot in United Kingdom - or in the English part of it, at least - to provide free influenza inoculation not only to those over 65 but to everybody over 50 and to other vulnerable categories of the population. With all the problems we are experiencing at the moment, it is essential that the HSE makes preparations to do that in September and October. I would like to hear from the Minister that that is going to happen, that the plans are well advanced and that we are not going to find ourselves running to catch up when this becomes a problem in November. In the southern hemisphere, where the seasons are different, there are indications that social distancing and mask-wearing for Covid have reduced the prevalence of influenza and are having a repressive effect on it. That may be the case but we have an opportunity now to do something about the coincidence of flu and Covid and I would like to hear what the Minister proposes to do.