Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly has explained that the plan for the rollout is to have 1.2 million vaccine doses administered in Ireland in "around six weeks' time."
He has revealed that additional AstraZeneca doses have been secured after a dip in supply for quarter one. He said:
"We've managed to get some of that back so by the end of March - in about six weeks' time - our plan is to have administered about 1.2million doses.
"And then in April, May, June, if the supply comes in, we'll be receiving a decent amount in excess of a million vaccines. When you vaccinate your most vulnerable, which is what we're doing, you quite quickly reduce the risk profile for the country."
Touching on the rollout of the vaccine doses so far, the minister explained how there is a sense of hope emerging. He told Newstalk Breakfast:
"The vaccine programme is far more than a chink of light. On a human level, the hope around the country at the moment is incredible.
"I went to one of the GP surgeries...and it was really quite emotional. The people there were very emotional, the staff were emotional. I was allowed to sit in with one lady who was getting her vaccine, she became very emotional as the weight of the last year and the awfulness of the last year came to her mind.
"I was talking to the IMO who were saying GPs with decades of experience, some of them are saying the best days of their career to date are the days they're bringing their patients in and vaccinating them.
"So below the radar, there is something really beautiful and hopeful happening".
He also said that it's unknown whether or not
staycations will be possible this summer.
An Taoiseach Micheál Martin said last night that "severe" restrictions will remain in place until the end of April ahead of the release of the revised Living with Covid plan next week.
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