Ireland To Have Access To 16 Million Covid-19 Vaccine Doses In 2021

The head of the HSE Paul Reid says it's possible the vaccine will start to become available here by early January.

The European Commission has signed advance purchase agreements with six pharmaceutical companies including Pfizer and Moderna, giving Ireland access to 16 million doses.

The HSE's Dr Colm Henry says the National Immunisation Advisory Committee will advise who should be priortised for vaccination.

9 Ultra cold freezers -that can hold 200 thousand doses - have been acquired to store the vaccines.

HSE CEO Paul Reid says there's also have existing storage capacity at Citywest.

A high-level taskforce met this week to discuss how to best roll out covid-19 vaccines in Ireland, and will present it's strategy to Government on Friday week.