Written answers

Wednesday, 15 September 2021

Photo of Richard Boyd BarrettRichard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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601. To ask the Minister for Health the reason level 2 contact tracers are not paid the same as level 1 staff; if the quota will be removed for phone calls per day with the understanding that some calls are difficult and take longer than others in order to remove the pressure that staff face doing this important job; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43301/21]

Photo of Stephen DonnellyStephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Photo of Richard Boyd BarrettRichard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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602. To ask the Minister for Health the provision there is in legislation for persons who cannot get vaccinated for medical reasons in relation to the vaccine passport system; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43305/21]

Photo of Stephen DonnellyStephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The EU Digital COVID Certificate concerns the issuing and verification of certificates for medical events including vaccination, recovery, and testing related to COVID-19. The EU Digital COVID Certificate regulation, and subsequent associated national regulations, do not provide for the issuing of a certificate for individuals who have not had a medical event as outlined. It should be noted that the percentage of people who cannot receive a COVID-19 vaccine for medical reasons is very small.

The indoor dining regulations (SI 385/2021 as amended) provide for the use of the EU DCC (amongst other proofs ) to access indoor hospitality.  There is currently no provision for persons who cannot provide proof of vaccination or recovery ( apart from a minor accompanied by a parent / guardian or a person who is on site in a professional capacity) to access indoor hospitality premises.

In terms of travel, it is important to note that the EU Digital COVID Certificate (DCC) is not a requirement but rather a record of a medical event which can make international freedom of movement easier.  Regulations regarding travel to the State have been developed on the basis of public health advice in order to limit to the greatest extent possible and reasonable the importation of Covid-19.  In general, where a traveller is unable to provide evidence of vaccination for any reason, a negative ('not-detected') PCR test result from a test taken no more than 72 hours before arrival permits the traveller entry to the State.

When a traveller has been in a designated state in the 14 days prior to arrival, there is an obligation to enter mandatory hotel quarantine unless the traveller is exempt.  The current set of exemptions is set out in SI 134 of 2021.  Travellers who have been vaccinated with an EMA-approved vaccine are currently exempted from the requirement to undergo mandatory hotel quarantine.  The states currently designated for the purposes of mandatory hotel quarantine are: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Peru.  The list of designated states is kept under constant review, and changes are announced publicly and published on www.gov.ie/quarantine.

Finally, it should be noted that provision has been made for people who did not take up the offer of a second dose of AstraZeneca vaccine to be offered an mRNA vaccine in order to complete their vaccination schedule and a DCC is issued in such cases.  In this regard, the HSE has been advised to operationalise updated NIAC guidance in relation to the mixing of vaccines, specifically relating to certain people who are yet to complete a two-dose Covid-19 vaccine regimen.

The NIAC advice on heterologous vaccination relates to:

- those who are contraindicated from taking a second vaccine dose of a viral vector vaccine (e.g. had a severe reaction to the first dose of Vaxzevira® (AstraZeneca)) should be offered a second dose of an mRNA vaccine.

- those who have already had the first dose of Vaxzevria® and who did not complete the vaccination schedule as recommended should be offered an mRNA second dose in line with their priority grouping or age cohort.

The person would then be considered fully vaccinated after their second dose of an mRNA vaccine (7 days after Comirnaty®, 14 days after Spikevax®). 

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