Anyone aged 18 or older can register online for an mRNA Covid-19 vaccine from tomorrow in Ireland.
The Minister for Health announced on Tuesday evening that over-18s can register for the vaccines from Pfizer or Moderna from July 21st.
“This is because our vaccination programme is ahead of schedule and continues to perform really well,” Minister Stephen Donnelly said.
The move means every adult in the country is now eligible for a vaccine from Pfizer or Moderna, after younger adults could previously opt in to receive viral vector vaccines from AstraZeneca or Janssen.
📢 All those 18+ can register for an mRNA vaccine (Pfizer / Moderna) from tomorrow
This is because our vaccination programme is ahead of schedule and continues to perform really well.
Huge thanks to our vaccination teams and volunteers i vaccination centres @HSELive pic.twitter.com/y8R9CIQPc4— Stephen Donnelly (@DonnellyStephen) July 20, 2021
In the past two weeks, over 100,000 people aged 18 to 34 opted in to receive a Janssen vaccine in almost 800 appointed pharmacies around the country.
The secretary general of the Irish Pharmacy Union has called for the HSE to supply the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine to pharmacies participating in the Covid vaccination programme.
Darragh O’Loughlin told Newstalk radio earlier on Tuesday that pharmacies had received all the available supplies of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine with the next delivery scheduled for late August.
Mr O'Loughlin said this showed the enthusiasm of Irish young people and was “extraordinary” and “very encouraging”.
That “dip in supply” would mean a drop in vaccinations in pharmacies unless the HSE was prepared to send Pfizer vaccines, he said.
Meanwhile, a further 1,110 cases of Covid-19 were confirmed in the Republic on Tuesday, as a member of the National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet) warned that a new wave of infections will cause long-term health complications in a “sizeable minority” of young people.
