8,354 new Covid cases as over-65s and at-risk patients to be offered another jab

Niac says that people in these cohorts should receive a second booster jab four to six months after they were first boosted

More than 8,000 new cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed as the National Immunisation Advisory Committee (Niac) has recommended a fourth vaccine dose for everyone aged 65 and older.

Niac also recommended a second booster for those aged 12 and older who are immunocompromised, while children aged five to 11 who are immunocompromised should complete an extended primary course, which is a total of three vaccine doses.

People in these cohorts should receive a second booster jab four to six months after they were first boosted.

The Health Protection Surveillance Centre said it has been notified of 4,076 PCR-confirmed cases, while on Tuesday, 4,278 people registered a positive antigen test through the HSE portal.

As of 8am today, 1,333 patients are hospitalised with the virus of whom 58 are in intensive care.

Speaking about the Niac recommendation, Health Minister Stephen Donnelly said the HSE will now work on the rollout of the latest dose for those who need it.

Ireland is currently experiencing soaring case numbers, with hospitals still under significant pressure.

In a statement, Mr Donnelly welcomed the fresh set of recommendations.

He also confirmed that he had asked health officials to consider who else might need another booster dose.

“Covid-19 vaccines have achieved extraordinary success in preventing severe disease, hospitalisation and death. These vaccines continue to have a very good safety profile with hundreds of millions of doses administrated globally,” he said.

“Those who are unvaccinated or incompletely vaccinated continue to be disproportionality affected and account for approximately a third of hospitalisations for Covid-19.

“As such, I urge anyone for whom an additional dose of vaccine has been recommended, or anyone yet to receive their primary course or booster vaccine do so as soon as possible.

“I have asked the NIAC to continue to actively examine the evidence regarding the likely benefit of a second booster to other groups, vaccine choice and interval, in order to make further recommendations in this regard.”