Limerick vaccination centre to close for horse racing meeting

Uproar at move after surge of 1,000 Covid cases across Limerick in past 14 days

The HSE Covid-19 vaccination centre is based on the grounds of the racecourse in Patrickswell. File picture: Lorraine O'Sullivan

A decision to close a Covid-19 vaccination centre at Limerick Racecourse on Saturday, to facilitate a horse racing meeting, has caused uproar across the city and county, where a surge of almost 1,000 Covid cases has been identified in the past 14 days.

The HSE Covid-19 vaccination centre is based on the grounds of the racecourse in Patrickswell. The centre will close on Saturday while racing goes on at the track, a spokesman for the UL Hospitals Group confirmed this afternoon.

The vaccination centre will also close to allow racing meetings on June 18, July 4, July 10, and July 22.

Limerick Sinn Féin TD Maurice Quinlivan called on Health Minister Stephen Donnelly to clarify who made the decision to close the vaccination centre and if his department was aware of it.

Mr Quinlivan said people had contacted his Limerick constituency office this week and expressed upset that their appointments for the Limerick vaccination centre had been moved to Nenagh, Co Tipperary.

“This is just incredible. We are in the middle of a public health emergency, there has been a spike in Covid cases in Limerick over the last few weeks, yet we are closing our vaccine centre,” Mr Quinlivan said.

'Mismanaged from the outset'

He claimed the vaccine rollout in Limerick “has been mismanaged from the outset”, and complained the previous local vaccination site, at the Radisson Hotel, was actually located in Co Clare and “wasn’t a convenient location for those who needed public transport access”.

“We called for a centre to be placed in the city to facilitate those who don’t have public transport, and instead the people of Limerick were provided with the racecourse,” he said.

It is farcical in the extreme that this vaccine centre will be closed to facilitate a horse meeting. The public take-up on vaccinations has been excellent, but this closure creates the impression that public health falls second to commercial activity.” 

Mr Quinlivan added: “It is an affront to the people of Limerick that this commercial activity would trump the vaccination programme at a time when we have seen a worrying rise of Covid numbers in Limerick.”

He called on Mr Donnelly to establish a vaccine centre within the metropolitan area of Limerick City, adding: “I am extremely disappointed in this move. On Friday last, the Limerick elected members had a meeting with the Minister for Health and [chief medical officer] concerning the large Covid numbers in Limerick and the temporary closing of the vaccine centre was not mentioned. The people of Limerick deserve better.” 

'Unacceptable'

Local Green Party TD Brian Leddin said the closure was “unacceptable” and “the latest misstep in the planning of the vaccination programme in Limerick”.

He argued that “it is unacceptable that issues like this are being communicated in a haphazard fashion, and the HSE urgently needs to clarify these issues to maintain public confidence in the vaccination programme”.

Limerick Racecourse has been asked for a response.

A spokesman for the UL Hospitals Group confirmed: “There are no vaccination appointments scheduled at the Limerick Covid-19 Vaccination Centre in Limerick Racecourse tomorrow, Saturday, June 12, due to a horse racing meeting scheduled at the venue.

“Due to the acceleration of vaccine administration locally made possible through our recent relocation to the larger racecourse venue, there will be no consequent impact on our programme, which will see some 24,000 vaccines delivered at the racecourse centre alone next week. 

“As part of the agreement allowing for the relocation of the vaccination centre from the Radisson Blu to Limerick Racecourse, it was agreed that due to movement to and from the site for the race meets on June 12, June 18, July 4, July 10, July 22, no vaccinations would be scheduled on those dates.” 

Professor Paul Burke, chief academic officer of UL Hospitals Group and lead for the three Mid-West vaccination centres, said these agreed dates would not delay Covid-19 vaccinations for people in the Mid-West, due to the significantly increased capacity of the racecourse centre compared with the facility at the Radisson Blu.

"With a maximum capacity of 46 vaccination booths compared with the 32 available at the Radisson Blu, the racecourse centre allows us to offset any delay in our vaccination programme that would have been caused in allowing for the relocation to the racecourse, and from the events calendar at the Racecourse itself. 

"Next week, we will be administering 24,000 vaccines at the racecourse centre, and 7,000 each in the Ennis and Nenagh centres. Losing the days scheduled for the race meetings will not impact, because of the significant increase in booth capacity," he said.

There have been no cancellations involved as a result of tomorrow's event, and vaccine appointments have been offered to people in our centres in Nenagh and Ennis, a spokesman said.