Pregnant women will not get vaccine from GPs

Pregnant women will be unable to receive the whooping cough vaccine from their GPs after medics insisted it is not their job to administer the jab.

The stand-off, which is being discussed by medical unions and the HSE, comes at a time when whooping cough cases have doubled in the last year, with two infants dying, and GPs are battling to avoid a €70m fee cut.

In a joint statement, the Irish Medical Organisation and the Irish College of General Practitioners said members will not be administering the jab.