An Ennis GP says a new plan that will see practitioners and pharmacists administer COVID-19 vaccines is ‘light at the end of the tunnel’.
The 91 million euro plan, approved yesterday by Cabinet, will allow GPs and chemists to give the AstraZeneca vaccine to patients, once it’s approved by the European Medicines Agency at the end of the month.
The arrival date of the Astrazeneca vaccine to Ireland has not been finalised, however, with Health Minister Stephen Donnelly saying he’s requested the vaccine to be in Ireland ahead of its expected approval by the EMA.
It’s hoped 1.5 million people can be vaccinated against the virus by the end of the summer as a result of the move.
Dr Maire Finn says while the news is welcome, the rollout of the jab here so far has been slow and cumbersome.
