Waterford leads the way with highest Covid vaccination uptake rate but incidence rate also remains high

Waterford has the highest Covid-19 vaccine uptake rate in the country with 96.6% of over 12s fully vaccinated.

The latest HSE figures show the South East has the highest Covid vaccination rates while the counties with the lowest levels of uptake are both in the North West.

The high uptake figures come as, for the third week in a row, it's confirmed that Waterford remains the county with the highest incidence rate of Covid-19.

771 cases were confirmed here up to midnight on Oct 31st (Sunday), and the 14-day incidence rate of the virus in Waterford is 1,261 cases per 100 thousand people.

On Wednesday morning the national incidence was 695 - a rise of 18% in the past two weeks.

A Tramore GP says that while case numbers remain high among the vaccinated population, people's chances of being hospitalised or dying are extremely low.

Dr. Austin Byrne says that having the vaccine reduces your chances of getting Covid, but doesn't mean you can't get it:

"When we vaccinate across the population, for the same number of covid cases last year,  our hospitalisations are down 70%, our ICU stays are down 85% and our death rate is down 95%.

"So covid is still out there and people who are vaccinated can still acquire Covid virus but their chances of death are extremely low, the chances of ICU are really low, the chances of hospital admission are quite low, but they can still get it."

On Tuesday evening, there were 12 people being treated in University Hospital Waterford with the virus, the figures has remained around this level for the past week. In Cork University Hospital there were 29 and University Hospital Limerick had the highest number with 40.

National uptake

While Waterford is leading the way with 96.6 per cent of over 12s fully vaccinated against Covid, other south east counties are performing well.

Carlow is at 96.4 per cent with Wexford on 95.

There are eight counties where more than 10 per cent of eligible people haven't got a first dose yet.

They are Monaghan and Donegal, where uptake levels are in the low 80s, as well as Laois, Offaly, Longford, Dublin, Cavan and Kilkenny.

The HSE is continuing to use pop-up clinics and targetted local campaigns to try and get more people to come forward.

It's also trying to reach people whose first language isn't English to provide information about the vaccination rollout.

Table 3.2. Percentage Estimate of Total 12+ years Eligible Population* (n=4,152,710, CSO/HIU 2021 April 2021/H1 estimates) for fully vaccinated by county of residence and age group, end of day, 24/10/2021 at midnight, (n=3,741,721 doses including 1,244 unassigned to a gender)