David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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2345. To ask the Minister for Health if he will address a matter regarding the HPV vaccine (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37445/21]

Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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2698. To ask the Minister for Health if secondary school students who could not avail of the HPV vaccine due to the fact they started the school year in 2018-2019 will be able to avail of it at a later date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38807/21]

Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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2699. To ask the Minister for Health if a student who could not avail of the HPV vaccine in their first year of secondary school can avail of the vaccine at a later date while they are still a student in the school; if not, if this policy will be reviewed in order to encourage as many students as possible to avail of this vaccine before leaving school; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38808/21]

Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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2768. To ask the Minister for Health if a catch-up programme will be put in place for the HPV vaccine (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39083/21]

Michael Lowry (Tipperary, Independent)
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2854. To ask the Minister for Health if children that refused the HPV vaccine when originally offered same in their first year of secondary school education can now avail and register to receive the vaccine during the 2021-2022 vaccine programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39382/21]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 2345, 2698, 2699, 2768 and 2854 together.

The immunisation programme in Ireland is based on the advice of the National Immunisation Advisory Committee (NIAC). The committee's recommendations are based on the prevalence of the relevant disease in Ireland and international best practice in relation to immunisation. It makes recommendations on vaccination policy to my Department. The NIAC continues to revise recommendations to allow for the introduction of new vaccines in Ireland and to keep abreast of changes in the patterns of disease. Therefore, the immunisation schedule will continue to be amended over time.

In 2009, the NIAC recommended HPV (human papillomavirus) vaccination for all 12 to 13 year old girls to reduce their risk of developing cervical cancer when they are adults. In September 2010, the HPV vaccination programme was introduced for all girls in first year of secondary school.

In June 2017, on foot of the NIAC’s recommendation that the HPV vaccine should also be given to boys, my Department asked the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) to undertake a health technology assessment (HTA) to establish the clinical and cost-effectiveness of extending the immunisation programme to include boys in the first year of secondary school.

The HIQA completed the HTA in December 2018, recommending that the HPV immunisation programme be extended to include boys. A policy decision was made to extend the HPV immunisation programme to include boys, starting in September 2019, with the introduction of a 9-valent HPV vaccine.

The ages at which vaccines are recommended in the immunisation schedule are chosen by the NIAC in order to give each child the best possible protection against vaccine preventable diseases. As the HPV vaccine is preventative it is intended to be administered, if possible, before a person becomes sexually active, that is, before a person is first exposed to HPV infection.

Therefore, the gender-neutral HPV vaccination programme targets all girls and boys in first year of secondary school to provide maximum coverage. All vaccines administered through the School Immunisation Programme are provided free of charge.

My Department will continue to be guided by NIAC's recommendations on any emerging evidence on this issue in the future.

It is important to note that the schools-based immunisation programme for the 2019/2020 academic year has been completed and the uptake rates for the HPV vaccine in that academic year are 82% for the first dose of the vaccine and 77% for the second dose.

This is the highest uptake for the HPV vaccination programme since 2015/2016 and is particularly encouraging because it was the first year that boys were included in the programme and it shows that the provision of vaccine in community clinics did not adversely affect the uptake.

The programme for the academic year 2020/2021 was paused during the first few months of 2021 due to school closures and redeployment of staff to the COVID-19 immunisation programme.

The inputting of uptake information for the schools-based programme has also been delayed due to redeployment of administrative staff. However, Community Healthcare Organisations have reported that the vast majority of second level schools had their first dose of HPV vaccine delivered between October and December 2020.

The uptake rate for the first dose of the HPV vaccine, in the 2020/2021 academic year, is 67% as of the 12th May 2021, and this figure is expected to increase because data input on vaccine uptake is ongoing.

The HSE expects the HPV vaccination programme for 2020/21 to be substantially complete before the start of the 2021/22 academic year.

Anyone not in 1st year of secondary school or age equivalent in special schools or home schooled during the 2020/2021 school year who wishes to get the HPV vaccine, must go to their GP or sexual health clinic and pay privately for the vaccine and its administration. This applies to everyone whether or not they have a medical card/GP visit card, as it is outside of the HPV immunisation programme.

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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2346. To ask the Minister for Health the considerations made in giving Covid-19 vaccines to the 15 to 17-year-old group; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37455/21]

Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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2388. To ask the Minister for Health the status of the possible extension of the Covid-19 vaccination programme to persons under 16 years of age particularly to those with underlying conditions; and if it is likely those at risk will be vaccinated before the return to school. [37661/21]

Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats)
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3238. To ask the Minister for Health when NIAC will make a recommendation for the vaccination of 12 to 15-year-olds; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40969/21]

Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats)
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3300. To ask the Minister for Health his plans in respect of providing Covid-19 vaccinations for children under the age of 16; and the timescale to which he is working. [41278/21]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 2346, 2388, 3238 and 3300 together.

Ireland welcomes the European Medicines Agency age extension recommendation for the COVID-19 vaccine Comirnaty to include use in children aged 12 to 15. The National Immunisation Advisory Committee is reviewing the matter and will make a recommendation as appropriate. Currently, Ireland's COVID-19 Vaccination Programme is administering vaccines to those aged 16+.