asked the Minister for Health if he will state with reference to the schemes of vaccination against poliomyelitis the numbers vaccinated under the free and the, contributory schemes, respectively, during the period ended 30th September, 1958, and the numbers on waiting lists on that date.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Vaccination against Poliomyelitis.
Under the free scheme 75,576 children and 775 expectant mothers received one or two injections of the vaccination course during the period ended 30th September, 1958 The numbers who received one or two injections under the contributory scheme were 8,339 children and 174 expectant mothers.
The numbers on waiting lists on 30th September, 1958, were 10,339 for the free scheme and 2,296 for the contributory scheme.
It should be noted that the current free scheme was authorised in April and the contributory scheme in July of this year. I should perhaps mention that in addition to the above, some 43,554 children and 393 adults who received preliminary injections in 1957 were given injections to complete the full course since 1st January, 1958.
In relation to the figure of 8,000 to which the Parliamentary Secretary refers, would those people be deemed to be in the middle income group?
I assume so but I could not say definitely.
It is a very small number in view of the statement of the Minister for Health that he was providing a satisfactory scheme for people who could not afford to get those injections.
Maybe they did not avail of it.
Maybe it was too expensive.
asked the Minister for Health if he will state with reference to the schemes of vaccination against poliomyelitis the estimated number of people eligible for vaccination under (a) the free scheme and (b) the contributory scheme; and what proportion in each class has been vaccinated up to a recent convenient date.
It is estimated that about 281,000 children and 30,600 expectant mothers are eligible for poliomyelitis vaccination under the present free scheme operated by health authorities, and about 234,200 children and 25,500 expectant mothers are eligible under the contributory scheme.
These schemes were introduced in the present financial year and in the period up to 30th September, 1958, the proportion of children in each class who received one or two injections of the vaccination course was 27 per cent. in the case of the free scheme and 4 per cent. in the case of the contributory scheme. The response from expectant mothers was negligible.
The foregoing figures do not, of course, include expectant mothers or children who were vaccinated by their family doctors or otherwise outside the scheme.