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A leading Fianna Fáil backbencher has characterised changes to the vaccine prioritisation list as a decision to “pull the rug” from under some workers.
Former minister for agriculture Barry Cowen said he understood the decision, that it was based on “science and reasoning”. But he argued that a group of workers would feel deflated having been assured their place would be higher due to infection risk associated with their employment.
“Now suddenly to pull the rug from under them is far from ideal and most disheartening and disturbing for those cohorts,” said Mr Cowen prior to this evening’s meeting of the Fianna Fáil parliamentary party.
He said that from early on in the pandemic it was known that coronavirus had a more severe impact on older and more vulnerable people. “But Niac [the National Immunisation Advisory Council] and Government persisted in promising and assuring key workers their place would be higher because of the risk of infection associated with their employment.”
He said the decision “undoubtedly increases the pressure and absolute need to adhere now to vaccination rollout promises/targets/commitments”. Referring to the Government’s ambition to have 80 per cent of the adult population with one shot by the end of June, he said that required administering 250,000 doses per week from here on.
“It means having GPs, pharmacists and all vaccinator personnel and centres at full tilt from here on ensuring that 250,000 a week is met. Failure to live up to those commitments would be a further blow to those impacted by this change of direction announced by Niac/Government in vaccination strategy.”
Crowded workplaces
Mr Cowen was among several TDs to raise the issue at the party meeting, including Dún Laoghaire Rathdown’s Cormac Devlin. Mr Cowen said that special needs assistants should be considered under Cohort 9, those in crowded workplaces. He told the meeting that he accepted reluctantly the change, but called for a timeline for the vaccination programme to be published. And he said there were questions about the role of pharmacists that had to be addressed.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin defended the decision, saying older teachers and special needs assistants will get the vaccine sooner under the new system which he said will allow for a faster rollout.
Mr Martin told the meeting that a further easing of restrictions in March or April risked a surge in cases which could put the summer at risk. And he said the Government is following public health advice and trying to “strike the right balance”.
Mr Martin also told the parliamentary party that opening up too early could “wreck” the summer and that there was a need to contain the virus while ramping up the vaccines programme. He said supply of vaccines had “hardened up” which would allow for expansion of the rollout. He told the meeting that if the state was “too liberal” in opening up in March and April “we risk paying for it in the summer dealing with it”.