Ireland's hopes of lifting lockdown restrictions heading into Summer could be hit by a delay due to the suspension of the AstraZeneca vaccine.
We're due to receive over 800,000 doses of the vaccine by the end of June and if the vaccine is not deemed safe it could have a big impact on the rollout here.
It was suspended in Ireland as a precautionary measure yesterday as investigations continue into blood clotting in people after they had had the vaccine.
So far the cases have not been directly linked to the vaccine but Ireland's decision on the use of the jab will wait until the investigation by the EMA is completed.
Due to the investigation it was confirmed last night that 30,000 people's appointment to be vaccinated has been delayed.
Around 20,000 members of the public and 10,000 healthcare workers were due to get the jabs this week.
The Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA) here has said it has received a small number of reports associated with blood clots following vaccination with the AstraZeneca vaccine.
However, it has not received any reports of the nature of those described by the Norwegian Medicines Agency.
In a statement, they said: “There is currently no indication that vaccination was the cause of these events, and there may be alternative explanations for their occurrence that are unrelated to the vaccine.
“However, the safety of the public is of the utmost importance, and it is essential that reports of potential safety concerns, even if very rare, are rigorously and swiftly investigated so that the public can be reassured and if required, appropriate action can be taken.”
Health Minister Stephen Donnelly said last night: “We'll see what the EMA says in the coming days, but what we hope is that this is nothing more than a very short deferral.
“If they have to be rescheduled for a week or two because of this of course they will be disappointed by that.
“Obviously nobody would want to see this kind of thing happening, however what I am very comforted by, as Minister for Health, is that our senior clinicians leading the vaccination programme moved very quickly and they are erring on the side of caution.
“That is something I want to see and I think it is something the Irish people want to see.”
Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr Ronan Glynn said the move to suspend the vaccine's use was an "abundance of caution".
He said: "It's very important to reassure people that there is no evidence of a cause and effect at this point.
“We have a safety signal and when we get those we have to act and proceed on the basis of a precautionary principle.
“So hopefully as this week goes on we'll get more reassuring data from the EMA and we can recommence the programme.
"It may be nothing, we may be overreacting, and I sincerely hope that in a week's time we are accused of being overcautious.”
