Written answers

Wednesday, 21 April 2021

Department of Education and Skills

Vaccination Programme

Photo of Michael McNamaraMichael McNamara (Clare, Independent)
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983. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if teachers are going to be prioritised for the vaccination programme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18916/21]

Photo of Norma FoleyNorma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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The new vaccination roll out schedule, which was recommended to government by the National Immunisation Advisory Committee and endorsed by the NPHET, is that the remainder of the population after Group 9 will be completed on an age basis from those aged 64 years and younger, and that this decision will replace the previous groupings in the original plan.

The evidence is clear that hospitalisation and death risk increases with age, while a review conducted by NIAC did not see any occupational group emerge as being at higher risk of morbidity or mortality. The risk of someone aged 55-64 with COVID-19 is 70 times higher in terms of death, over 20 times higher in terms of ICU admission and 5 times higher in terms of hospitalisation when compared to the risk facing someone aged 20-34 with COVID-19.

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