Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 31 March 2021
1184. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Health the reason a fully vaccinated Irish citizen returning to Ireland with a negative PCR test still has to quarantine in a hotel for up to two weeks pending another clear PCR test (details supplied); and the plan regarding same going forward. [17473/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Health Act 1947, as amended, provides that all persons arriving in Ireland from a designated state, or having travelled through a designated state in the previous 14 days, are required to undergo mandatory quarantine in a designated facility unless they are an exempted traveler under the Act.
A National Oversight Group for Variants of Concern has been established to monitor and address the challenges posed by variants of COVID-19, including the potential for a difference in the effectiveness of various vaccines against those variants. Quarantine of persons arriving from areas with a high incidence of variants of concern is considered a deterrent against the emergence of such variants in the State and as such all persons arriving from those designated states are required to undergo mandatory quarantine in a designated facility, regardless of vaccination status, unless otherwise exempt.
The designation of states will be subject to ongoing review in line with the provisions of Section 38B of the Health Act 1947, which was inserted by the Health (Amendment) Act 2021.
