100% aged 70-79 in Cavan deemed fully vaccinated

Nineteen counties, including Cavan, have vaccine rates above the national average. Monaghan and Donegal have lowest uptake rates.

Those aged between 70 and 79 years in Cavan are the only group to be deemed 100% vaccinated, according to the latest data from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC).

The same tranche of information also revealed that Donegal and Monaghan have the lowest uptake rate at 84% although in both counties 99.9% of those over the age of 80 are fully vaccinated.

Nineteen counties, including Cavan, have vaccine rates above the national average of 92.8% among eligible persons over the age of 12.

Yesterday, Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly, and Minister of State with responsibility for Public Health, Wellbeing and the National Drugs Strategy, Frank Feighan, announced the establishment of a Public Health Reform Expert Advisory Group (EAG).

Their work will be to initially focus on identifying learnings from the public health components of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Ireland.

The expert group will also identify lessons from international best practice regarding reform and strengthening of other core public health functions, including the promotion of health and well-being, population health research and health intelligence and health service improvement.

They will then examine the key components of the existing delivery model(s) for public health in Ireland, with a view to recommending an appropriate operating model to develop and oversee the delivery of Public Health in Ireland into the future.

The group’s work will be progressed through the Chairpersonship of Professor Hugh Brady, President-designate of Imperial College London, current Vice-Chancellor and President of the University of Bristol and former President of University College Dublin.

Membership of the Expert Group is comprised of national and international experts with experience across a range of key domains, including: public health, health protection, epidemiology, senior public health service leadership, change management, & risk and evidence communication.

Minister Feighan said research has found that the COVID-19 pandemic has inspired people to become more health aware and eager to proactively maintain a healthy lifestyle.

“By identifying the key learnings from the past two years of this pandemic, both nationally and internationally, we can only strengthen our core health functions, including the promotion of health and wellbeing and our health services generally. I look forward to the findings of the EAG and how they can assist the delivery of Healthy Ireland’s objectives.”

The expert group will produce a final report, which will be submitted to the Minister for Health by mid-2022.