THERE ARE NOW three Covid-19 vaccines approved for use across the European Union.

The most recently approved vaccine, produced by AstraZeneca, has been the source of some controversy after the company told the European Commission its deliveries of vaccines in the first quarter of this year will be reduced.

The European Medicines Agency has recommended its use for all adults aged over 18, which means it can potentially be administered to all adults as part of Ireland’s vaccine programme.

However, there is still uncertainty about the level of protection it provides for those over the age of 65 and the German authorities have said they will not administer the jab to the country’s older population due to a lack of data.

All three developers with vaccines approved by the EMA (Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna and AstraZeneca) have told EU countries that their vaccine deliveries will be reduced, impacting on roll-out schedules, including in Ireland. 

With three vaccines approved, we’re continuing our Covid-19 Q&A series to help answer questions you may have, either about a specific vaccine or about how Ireland’s vaccine programme is working.

Send us your questions to answers@thejournal.ie and we’ll do our best to get through as many as we can, with a piece this weekend covering the main topics raised by readers.