THE GOVERNMENT IS “worried” about the number of people who are not vaccinated against flu, Fine Gael minister Patrick O’Donovan has said.

Speaking during Leader’s Questions he said: “We’re worried about the amount of people that could still get the flu vaccine.

“Well over three quarters of the people in hospital at the moment with the flu aren’t vaccinated, that’s a concern.”

Latest figures

Latest figures released today by the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) shows that there were 2,944 laboratory confirmed cases of the flu last week.

The previous week, there were 1,971 confirmed cases, meaning there was a 49% jump in confirmed cases in the space of a week.

Emergency Department (non-hospitalised) influenza cases also increased by 55% last week when compared to the previous week, to reach 1,662.

There were 41 confirmed flu cases in the week beginning 29 September and the number of confirmed cases of the flu has increased dramatically since.

In the week beginning 3 November, there were 457 confirmed cases and this has risen sharply to 2,944 in the most recent reporting period beginning the week beginning 1 December – a 544% increase.

In its latest report, the HSPC notes that flu activity continued to increase across all indicators last week and was at high levels overall and high to very high levels for those under 15.

The highest incidence rate is in those aged under 15 and those aged over 80.

Meanwhile, hospitalisations due to flu increased by 58%, from 415 cases in the week beginning 24 November to 657 cases last week.

There have also been 42 ICU admissions and 13 deaths reported for this season to date.

Vaccine uptake ‘frightening’

Minister O’Donovan was responding to a question from Labour’s Conor Sheehan, who described the low uptake as “frightening” and said the Government had “failed” to address this with information and awareness campaigns.

He said the vaccine should be free and universal, and the Labour Party has been “saying this for ten years”.

He also said reports that an “enhanced” flu vaccine was not obtained because of cost reasons was “incredibly concerning”.

He said: “We know the enhanced flu vaccine outperforms the standard vaccine, particularly with older people, and this is madness, given the data we have from Australia.”

Australia’s flu season comes before Ireland’s and data from strains in circulation there informs the development of vaccines for the northern hemisphere.

O’Donovan described the vaccine as “the best form of protection” and encouraged “anybody that still hasn’t got the flu vaccine to please go out and get it”.

He said he was vaccinated himself as he is “from a cohort of people where I’m immunosuppressed, I need to get it”.

In Ireland the vaccine is free for a number of groups including everyone over 60, children aged between two and seventeen, people with underlying medical conditions, healthcare workers and carers and pregnant women.

-With additional reporting from Press Association