3. Statement by the Minister for Health and Social Services: Update on COVID-19 vaccinations

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 3:02 pm on 2 March 2021.

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Photo of Rhun ap Iorwerth Rhun ap Iorwerth Plaid Cymru 3:02, 2 March 2021

(Translated)

Thank you very much and welcome back, Deputy Llywydd. If I may ask for some clarity on two particular areas, the first is vaccination for unpaid carers. We got some clarity from the First Minister a little earlier—I was pleased to hear that—in terms of the process of deciding which carers will qualify for a vaccination in priority group 6. It's clear that those carers will have to make an application themselves through an online form to be considered for that. I note that the onus here is on the carers themselves to make that application, where other priority groups receive the vaccination automatically, and that's unfortunate, I think. I think that international experience suggests that the more people have to opt in then the lower the percentage that actually access the vaccination. So, could we have some more detail as to how that process is to work, and how swiftly do you think you can deal with appeals when people are rejected to be on that priority list?

The second issue—. I've lost this argument, it would appear. My argument is that people in public-facing roles should be prioritised along with others as the vaccination process deals with people on an age-based basis. I know that the older you are, the more likely you are to become very ill, but there is clarification here that the JCVI has considered a number of factors. Age is the most important, according to them. They've looked at gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, according to the statement. But there's another question here: where is the coverage for exposure, the likelihood of one actually catching COVID? I know that most people who are likely to become very ill or worse have already been vaccinated, but are you saying, therefore, that it doesn't matter if young people get COVID? I think it does matter, and that we should try and prevent young people in public-facing roles from catching COVID. Can you explain whether long COVID and the impact of that has been taken into account as part of the equation here? Also, of course, there is very encouraging research that suggests that the vaccination makes it less likely that you pass the virus on to others. Well, if so, then it makes sense, once again, for those people who are in public-facing roles to have received the vaccination earlier, even if they are a little younger. Thank you.