Sinn Féin spokesperson on Health David Cullinane TD has sought and received agreement of the Health Committee to have a session on the Covid-19 Vaccines on 16th December.

Teachta Cullinane said:

“The progress on developing a Covid-19 vaccine is welcome. We now have several viable contenders who hope to be able to distribute a vaccine in the first quarter of next year.

“We want to hear from the High-Level Task Force on its remit and plans, and I hope that the producers will have the opportunity to supply information to the Committee on the progress with their vaccines.

“We must learn from the problems with the flu vaccine this year. We cannot have a situation where there are distributional or storage issues with the vaccine, and we need to be more proactive in ensuring the right people get access to the vaccine as soon as possible.

“This is the clear task for the High-Level Task Force. Vaccine availability, while a few months off, will come quickly. We need to be ready to hit the ground running.

“Sinn Féin supports the Right to Cure campaign, which is an EU-wide campaign that calls for all treatments, therapies and vaccines related to Covid-19 to be universally and freely available.

“We are calling on the government to ensure that this becomes a reality.

“We cannot have a situation where those on low pay, and most at risk of contracting the virus in the workplace, cannot afford the vaccine.

“I am seeking information on the government’s plans for making the vaccines universally available once they are ready.”