By Kevin Galvin
A Tipperary pharmacy has confirmed the details of what role community pharmacies will play in administering COVID-19 vaccines.
Despite hopes that pharmacies across the region would begin rapidly speeding up the process of administering vaccines to people across the younger age cohort, Quirke's Pharmacy in Clonmel have confirmed that community pharmacies are only to be used in specific circumsntraces.
Pharmacies will only over the one-shot Janssen vaccine to persons aged 50 or over, who have not yet presented themselves for vaccination.
After months of uncertainty, the HSE has provided some clarity on what role community pharmacies will have in the COVID Vaccination program.
Participating pharmacies will ONLY be able to offer the one-shot Janssen vaccine to persons aged 50 and above who, for whatever reason,— Quirkes Pharmacy (@QuirkesPharmac) June 4, 2021
The 14th of June will see some pharmacies across the region start administering the vaccine, based on the supply of stock.
Last week, Health Minister Stephen Donnelly told the Dáil that "significant" delivery shortfalls of the Janssen vaccine would set the government target back.
He said that while Ireland had a contract for 600,000 doses of the one-shot vaccine, the best-case scenario is that 235,000 will be delivered, while a worst case would be just 60,000.
He said that this is down to a J&J plant in the US not yet being approved by the European Medicines Agency.
Quirke's in Clonmel say that there is a 'possibility' that the mRNA Pfizer vaccine will be included in the pharmacy rollout later in June, but there is 'little clarity' on that situation at present.
