Vaccine refusal rates are 'tiny' in Ireland but AstraZeneca pause caused anxiety

The Health Products Regulatory Authority said that of the 2,000 reports associated with AstraZeneca in Ireland, just seven were investigated for a blood clotting event.

The chair of the Irish Medical Organisation’s GP committee has said people are anxious about vaccine side effects but vaccine refusal rates are ”tiny” in Ireland.

Dr Denis McCauley said a lot of people were anxious to get the vaccine and most people are more worried about the effects of Covid than side effects associated with the vaccine.

However, he said pausing the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine is likely to have caused some anxiety.

Dr McCauley said he expected that the Health Products Regulatory Authority in Ireland will look at the EMA research and will pass the vaccine for use in Ireland.

He added that GPs were continuing to vaccinate the over-70s cohort with MRNA vaccines and were ready to commence vaccinating high risk groups such as those with diabetes, respiratory ailments and obesity using the AstraZeneca vaccine.

“We are in discussions with the HSE on how best to do this.” 

The HSE has said it will be a "period of days" before the vaccine is given to the public here.

The National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet) will today issue advice on next steps with the AstraZeneca rollout, after the European Medicines Agency (EMA) found the vaccine's benefits continue to outweigh the risks.

Nonetheless, while Germany, France and Italy have vowed to start administering it from today, HSE chief executive Paul Reid said: “There is a time needed to contact patients, to schedule patients. Some sites will have stock already, some will need to get stock distributed. It will be a period of days before we start the process, but some [sites] may be quicker than that."

He said vaccination teams will return to about 5,000 vulnerable people in Group 4 of the Covid-19 vaccine priority list who missed out last week when vaccinations were suspended due to fears that AstraZeneca could lead to blood clots. Some healthcare workers also missed out.

Mr Reid said: “There is a couple of steps next. From an operational perspective, we will obviously be going back to the people we had planned for in Cohort 4, we will be going back to healthcare workers.”

The EMA has now confirmed the vaccine is not associated with an increase in the overall risk of blood clots, in those who receive it. 

The review centred on potential links between this vaccine and cerebral venous thrombosis, or CVT. 

In all, 13 EU members including Ireland had suspended the vaccine, due to concerns following incidences in a small number of people, mostly women under 55.

Manufacturers of the four approved vaccines for Europe including Johnson & Johnson are now being asked to be alert for these incidents. 

Vaccine information leaflets will now warn immediate medical attention should be sought for symptoms of thromboembolism and thrombocytopenia, including easy bruising, bleeding or persistent headache.

Deputy chief medical officer Dr Ronan Glynn told a Nphet briefing last night that he welcomed the EMA's AstraZeneca ruling. 

He said meetings were planned with the National Immunisation Advisory Committee and the safety watchdog, the Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA).

“I will need to consider this further, and discuss this," he said. "We will be deliberating between the organisations, and [today] will issue an update.”

Dr Glynn defended the decision to pause the rollout even though the EMA had recommended vaccination continue during the review.

“I believe the right decision was made [to pause]. We acted swiftly and in the best interest of the population, and the best interests of the vaccination programme,” he said.

The HPRA said in a statement: “No national cases of these very rare blood clots associated with low levels of platelets have been reported.” 

It said that of the 2,000 reports associated with AstraZeneca in Ireland, just seven were investigated for a blood clotting event. There is no evidence, it said, these are occurring at a level greater than usual.

Also yesterday, following a meeting with Garda representative associations, Justice Minister Helen McEntee said she will relay their concerns about vaccine priority for gardaí to her colleagues in Government. 

A spokesman told the Irish Examiner that Ms McEntee agrees with the representative bodies that members of An Garda Síochána should be vaccinated as quickly as possible, once the vulnerable have been covered.

Meanwhile, a Government spokesperson has said America's decision to send millions of AstraZeneca doses to Mexico and Canada from a stockpile a day after Taoiseach Micheál Martin's meeting with US president Joe Biden is a matter for the Biden administration.

It is understood that Mr Biden did raise the issue of vaccine in Canada and Mexico with Mr Martin, but that discussions on Ireland's supply were more general and related to the ongoing cooperation between the EU and US.