Covid-19: Vaccines extended to people aged 60 to 64

Those aged 60 to 64 can now book online for their Covid-19 vaccine.

This is the start of phase three of the vaccine programme.

The Department of Health had intended to officially launch this stage of the rollout on Wednesday but members of the public noticed they were able to access it on Monday.

The department confirmed the move in a statement issued later on Monday evening.

More than half-a-million doses of the coronavirus vaccine have been administered in Northern Ireland, including 525,400 first doses.

That is about 27% of the overall population and about 35% of the adult population.

The vaccine programme is well on target as supplies so far have been arriving on time.

Data from Public Health England, released on Monday, showed a single shot of either the Oxford-AstraZeneca or the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid jab reduces the chance of needing hospital treatment by more than 80%.

On Sunday, it was revealed more than 20 million people in the UK had received their first dose of the coronavirus vaccine.

Northern Ireland's vaccination programme was extended to carers and those with underlying health conditions in February.

Who's eligible for a vaccine in NI?

• People aged 60 and over

• People classed as clinically extremely vulnerable (CEV), aged 16 or over on 31 March 2021

• Carers aged 18 and over on 31 March 2021

Phase three, which has begun with the vaccination of those aged 60 to 64, will be extended in time to include those aged 55 and over, and then to people aged 50 and over.

Mass vaccination of the general population is the fourth phase, expected to begin in summer 2021.

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Care home residents, health and social care workers and those aged 80 and over were vaccinated as part of the first phase.

Updates from the Department of Health indicate that almost half of all Northern Ireland's vaccine doses have been administered by GPs. The remainder is split relatively evenly across the five health trusts.

The updates also show that about 95% of people aged 80 and over in Northern Ireland have received a vaccine. And almost 40% of people who are termed clinically extremely vulnerable have been vaccinated.

According to the latest figures, the percentage of overall population vaccinated in NI is slightly behind England, Scotland and Wales but well ahead of the Republic of Ireland.