Pressure on pharmacies as vaccine-keen 18 to 34-year-olds scramble for jabs

Updated advice from the National Immunisation Advisory Committee allows for the AstraZeneca and Janssen vaccines to be given to people under the age of 40. Picture:Bloomberg

Pharmacists have been inundated with calls after the vaccine rollout programme was unexpectedly extended to younger people almost two months ahead of schedule. 

It follows updated advice from the National Immunisation Advisory Committee (Niac) that the AstraZeneca and Janssen vaccines can be given to people under the age of 40.

People aged 18 to 34 can now get the one-shot Janssen vaccine in pharmacies from Monday, but Health Minister Stephen Donnelly cautioned "there is not one for everyone in the audience".

Mr Donnelly asked for patience, warning that some pharmacists may be forced to cancel appointments depending on the delivery schedule.

"We will have to appeal to people's understanding on this," Mr Donnelly told the Dáil, adding that rolling out the vaccine to 750 pharmacies nationwide is "logistically very complex and it will not run perfectly".

He said officials will do everything to get the process "as right as possible" and "when mistakes are made, we will learn and respond."

A pharmacist in Millstreet, Co Cork, took more than 200 phone calls from young people yesterday but she has just five doses of the Janssen vaccine to administer.

Like hundreds of pharmacists, Mairéad Reen found out while listening to the radio that pharmacies can vaccinate people aged 18 to 34 next week.

She described it as frustrating to have so little information from the Government but is thrilled that the rollout is being extended. 

Similarly, Klara Kelleher at McCauley’s pharmacy in Blackpool in Cork City said staff fielded at least 100 calls from young people inquiring about the Covid jab.

The McCauley pharmacy group is operating an online registration system for those wishing to get the jab.

“The phone has been off the hook all day with young people calling about the vaccine but we expected that to happen once the announcement was made,” Ms Kelleher said.

“We’re taking registrations online through our website and we are waiting for vaccine supplies to come."

Mr Donnelly asked for patience, warning that some pharmacists may be forced to cancel appointments depending on the delivery schedule.

Secretary-general of the Irish Pharmacy Union, Darragh O’Loughlin urged people to book appointments, but cautioned to “be patient as it will take time for supplies to reach each participating pharmacy”.

Taoiseach Micheál Martin said the plan had been under discussion for some time but he warned that a “Delta wave” looks set to spread across Europe.

“I am very concerned with the Delta variant and that's why the Government took the decision it took earlier in the week to pause the reopening,” Mr Martin said.

Those in the younger age groups will still be able to wait for an mRNA vaccine — Pfizer or Moderna — with the HSE portal due to open for people between the ages of 20 and 35 next Friday. 

Those aged 25 to 29 will not get their first dose until early August, while mRNA vaccination of 18 to 25-year-olds will begin from mid-August.

The HSE has also admitted that a greater risk of blood clotting in younger people still exists for the AstraZeneca vaccine, but that risk is now outweighed by a need to speed up public vaccination.

Meanwhile, Ireland has agreed a deal to buy 1m vaccines from Romania.

Romania has stopped importing vaccines due to vaccine hesitancy among its citizens while its government began sending unwanted doses to Denmark earlier this week.

The deal was made in principle between Romanian president Klaus Iohannis and the Taoiseach, but logistics have yet to be worked out.

The shipment is expected to be made up of around 700,000 Pfizer vaccines and 300,000 Moderna vaccines.

“This process is continuing and is yet to be completed," a government spokesman said.

“Ensuring that as many people as possible can get vaccinated as quickly as possible remains the best way to combat Covid-19, particularly given the rapid rise of the Delta variant.”