Just six per cent of people will refuse to get vaccinated for Covid-19, according to the results of the latest tracker survey by Ipsos MRBI for the Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association (IPHA).
IPHA represents the international research-based biopharmaceutical industry.
Over three in four people, or 77 per cent, say they will take a Covid-19 vaccine while 15 per cent are unsure. The rest of the sample, or two per cent, say they have already been immunised against Covid-19.
The figures show a two-point rise in the number of people who will get vaccinated since the last tracker survey taken in the first half of January. The number of people who will not get inoculated has dropped by one point while the undecided cohort has fallen by three points.
As many women as men, or 77 per cent, said they will take a Covid-19 vaccine.
The age group most likely to take a Covid-19 vaccine are the over-65s, with 93 per cent intending to get inoculated.
In the group aged between 55 and 64, 84 per cent say they will get vaccinated. Of the six per cent of people overall who said they will not take a Covid-19 vaccine, this level was highest among 25 to 34-year-olds, at 12 per cent.
Oliver O’Connor, chief executive of IPHA, said: “The speed at which Covid-19 vaccine breakthroughs are happening is unprecedented. They have been enabled by science, by rigorous and efficient clinical assessment, and by the collaboration of expert teams across territories and between disciplines. The effort is aided by over-lapping phases of clinical trials, by government subsidies in research and production and by manufacturing ‘at risk’ by companies.
“The goal is to vaccinate as much of the population as possible, as quickly as possible. Because of viral mutations, modified vaccines are already in development. The scaling of global production capacity is complex, expensive and risky. So, too, is the scaling of logistics and distribution capacity. Just as the biopharmaceutical industry stepped up to the challenge of finding safe and effective vaccines in record time, it is working around the clock to produce enough doses to meet global demand. Collaboration has been our currency during the pandemic. Let’s keep working together to see it through.”
