Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Dooley for raising this matter. He is right. He and I and Senator Byrne have had these conversations. For a few minutes, it felt as if we were having a parliamentary party meeting, with just the three of us having the conversation until Senator Conway came along. To be honest, I have to read this answer as it is the answer from the Minister for Health. However, I hope time will allow me to give my personal input because, ultimately, I am representing people with disabilities and that vulnerable group the Senator spoke about so eloquently. He has laid out the position very clearly. All of us recognise the invaluable work that carers do and if we take them out of their role as the cog in the wheel, so to speak, who will look after the most vulnerable? That is the concern. We can talk about the child who might never be vaccinated because he or she is under 16 years of age. The parent who is under 65 years of age is happy and healthy but if that parent or, God forbid, the two adults in the house, were to contract the virus who will mind the child? The child might not be an only child. There may be other siblings in the house. The complexity of issues within a household is unbelievable.

The daily needs of the older relatives of the teacher the Senator mentioned are different but they must also be attended to. If that teacher comes down will the illness, not only is a classroom down a teacher but, importantly, the vulnerable relatives who are dependent on her from a feeding, shopping, going to the post office and medication point of view are also affected.

I acknowledge that what the Senator has outlined is very important. I will give him the answer but I wanted to explain to him my understanding of what I am articulating daily with NPHET. I met Paul Reid only two weeks ago about this issue. I have spoken also to the Minister, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, and the Minister of State, Deputy Butler. I have to lay out the position in the answer.

The Covid vaccination allocation strategy sets out a provisional list of groups for vaccination. The strategy was developed by the national immunisation advisory council, NIAC, and the Department of Health, endorsed by the public health emergency team, NPHET, and approved by the Government on 8 December but it is important to say that a lot has happened since 8 December.

Vaccination allocation is a matter for the Department of Health and it is rolled out by the HSE. The aim of the Covid vaccination programme is to ensure that the vaccines will become available over time to vaccinate all of those for whom the vaccine is indicated. Given that initially there will be a limited number of vaccines available it will take some time for all to receive them and it has necessitated an allocation strategy. All of us recognise that because the most need was in the nursing homes and our front-line staff. However, we are now into the parallel approach.This is very welcome. What we have managed to see is the reprioritising of the medically vulnerable and of the 60- to 65-year-old citizens within the disability groupings or under other conditions. What the Senator is saying here today is that as the allocation of vaccines comes on stream, perhaps the National Immunisation Advisory Committee, NIAC, will need to come go back and look at this again. The Minister, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, is continuously doing that. When we have 250,000 vaccines arriving from 1 April, with the help of God, perhaps we can have another parallel group. If I am hearing the Senator correctly, that is the group that he is speaking about. Senator Byrne and I have always said that the vaccine could be allocated to them as key workers. They should be moved to the current cohort 6. It is not in my discretion but I have a clear understanding of the request that Senator Dooley has made. As NIAC undertakes reviews and as allocations of vaccines become available, we should continue to make the case that the carer group should be within that grouping.