The latest Covid-19 vaccine update for the State has been released with over 230,000 doses administered so far.
230,776 vaccine doses have been administered as of Friday, February 5th.
This includes 151,212 people who have received their first dose and 79,554 people who have received their second dose.
This figure represents 4.64 per cent of the population who have received at least one dose of the Covid vaccine.
Meanwhile, up to 40 large vaccination centres will be put in place across the State in a bid to ramp up vaccination.
HSE chief Paul Reid said some of these facilities could have 40 to 50 lanes for people to be vaccinated, while others may have 10 to 20 bays.
Mr Reid told RTÉ’s This Week programme on Sunday that people aged over 70 will not be fully vaccinated until the middle of May.
Those over 70 will receive their first vaccination by mid-April and their second by mid-May, he said. It had originally been planned that the first doses would have been provided to those over 70 by the end of March.
“We do know that there's a high level of immunity once the first vaccine takes place but ultimately the complete immunity takes place after the second vaccine,” Mr Reid said.
“Our plan had always been to complete by the end of March but it looks like the first dose will be completed by the middle of April, and at the second dose will be completed by the middle of May.”
He said the revised plan to administer the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines to older people would commence on Monday, February 15th, starting with those aged over 85.
The HSE chief executive promised that older people who are immobile at home — and who could not get to proposed vaccination centres — “will not be left behind”.
Meanwhile, Minister of State with responsibility for Disability, Anne Rabbitte, today welcomed the roll out of vaccinations for frontline disability service workers.
“I am delighted to confirm that disability service staff are included in vaccination plans for frontline healthcare workers in the coming weeks. I know that this has been a huge concern to frontline disability service workers and their employers. Disability services have continued to operate during these Level 5 restrictions, providing vital supports to service users and their families during these difficult times.
"They play a pivotal role and I have worked hard with sectoral representatives to ensure that frontline healthcare workers in disability services would be prioritised as the vaccine becomes available, and I welcome the clarity on this today from Dr Colm Henry, the HSE Chief Clinical Officer.
“Registration for vaccination will be available online from tomorrow, Tuesday 9th February. It’s vital that all staff register as soon as possible to ensure that the scheduling of vaccination appointments for frontline healthcare more generally can proceed."
Six further Covid-19 deaths and 829 additional cases were confirmed in the Republic of Ireland today.
The median age of those who died was 84 years and the age range was 75-95 years.
There has now been a total of 3,687 Covid-19 related deaths in Ireland.
As of midnight Sunday, February 7th, the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) has been notified of 829 confirmed cases of Covid-19. There is now a total of 204,397 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Ireland.
Of the cases notified today:
- 401 are men/426 are women.
- 63 per cent are under 45 years of age.
- The median age is 35 years old.
- 386 cases are in Dublin, 39 in Meath, 36 in Cork, 35 in Kildare, 32 in Louth and the remaining 301 cases are spread across 20 other counties.
