Gap between AstraZeneca doses to be reduced to 12 weeks

The interval between doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine is being reduced from 16 weeks to 12 weeks, according to the Health Service Executive.

The interval will be reduced progressively from May 24th, HSE officials told a briefing on Thursday.

On proposals to reduce the age from which people can receive the AstraZeneca and Janssen vaccines from 50 to 40 years, HSE chief executive Paul Reid said these would require "significant change" to the operational model being used up to now in the vaccine rollout.

A move to a “choice-based model” – as people would be able to opt for other vaccines if they did not wish to get the AstraZeneca and Janssen doses – would mark a different approach to the one used up to now.

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Mr Reid said this would require careful consideration. There are “some concerns” over the delivery schedule for the Janssen vaccine, he pointed out, with just 60,000 doses received so far. Supply details for June are not yet available.

A further 18 cases of the B.1617.2 variant first identified in India have been identified in Ireland, HSE chief clinical officer Dr Colm Henry told the briefing, bringing to 59 the total number of cases. In addition, 22 cases of another sub-type, B.1617.1, have been found.

While this was of some concern, the measures taken in Ireland have slowed down the spread of the variant, he said, thereby allowing the vaccination programme to “run through the population” as quickly as possible.

Mr Reid said 43 per cent of the adult population had received one vaccine dose, with more than 2.2 million vaccines having been administered up to Wednesday.

This includes 1.6 million people who have received their first dose. Last Thursday saw the highest number of vaccines administered to date, 56,000.

Missing GP data

Some 250,000 vaccines were administered last week but this did not include data from GPs, which could not be included because of the cyber attack.

Over 320,000 people in their sixties, and 186,000 in the 50-59 age group, have received their first dose of vaccine.

At the start of the week, the 14-day incidence of Covid-19 was 124 cases per 100,000 population. Kildare, Donegal and Dublin had the highest county incidences; Sligo had the lowest.

No coronavirus-related deaths were reported in the Republic on Thursday but 469 new cases were confirmed. In Northern Ireland there were no additional deaths linked to Covid-19 but 90 further cases were confirmed.

Ministers in the North have given the go-ahead for significant relaxation of the Covid-19 rules in Northern Ireland from Monday.

From May 24th indoor hospitality will be allowed to reopen with mitigations, and up to six people from no more than two households are allowed to meet inside private homes for the first time since Christmas.

Also permitted is the reopening of indoor visitor attractions, libraries and the remainder of the travel and tourism industry, receptions following weddings and civil partnerships, school extracurricular activities, indoor group exercise and training and the full return of outdoor sport.

The number of people allowed to gather outdoors has been increased to 500, subject to a risk assessment, and up to 500 spectators are permitted at outdoor events.