HSE responds to anti-vax poster outside Cavan's vaccine centre

The HSE has responded to an anti-vaccine poster erected outside the Covid-19 vaccine centre in Cavan town.

Cavan has become the latest county to have such posters erected outside its Covid-19 vaccination centre. The poster was put up along the N3 outside the Hotel Kilmore in recent days.

Claiming to be a “public notice”, it carries the State harp and describes itself as “a lawful notice”.

It begins: 'Take notice. To those who may administer any medical substance without full disclosure of contents and all known side effects, and who do not obtain full explicit informed consent from intended recipients; are along with those who assist in such actions; criminally culpable, and carry personal liability for any loss, injury or death that occurs as a consequence of such actions.'

The message continues, before stating it was erected by Seán Wynne of the Gardasil awareness campaign. The Drumshanbo man has been a vocal campaigner against vaccines after his daughter became unwell after receiving the Gardasil HPV vaccine.

Mr Wynne, who’s vice-principal of Drumshanbo Vocational School, has since campaigned against the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, criticising those he says have described them as “silver bullets”.

He also ran as an independent candidate in the Sligo-Leitrim constituency in the 2020 General Election.

Mr Wynne did not respond when contacted for comment by The Anglo-Celt.

The sign is the latest to have been erected across the country close to vaccine centres. It’s understood a similar poster was erected outside the centre in Longford last week.

Notices, with a similar message, were also handed into a Co Cork pharmacy last week by an anti-vaccination group.

The HSE has said it did not publish the poster and the information included in it was "not authorised or published by the HSE". It has also urged people unsure about the Covid-19 vaccines to get information from its website, HSE.ie or from their GP or other health care professionals.

Cavan County Council said it had not received an application prior to the erection of the signage. Under its signage policy, it says it works to “enforce against the erection of unauthorised signage and to remove any signage that has been erected without the consent of the council”.

The local authority also said it had not received any complaints in relation to the sign.

Statement from the HSE

This is not a HSE poster, and the information included on the poster was not authorised or published by the HSE. Evidence based and up to date information on COVID and COVID vaccine is available on HSE.ie, along with a wide range of updated information posters, leaflets and videos. Information is also available via your GP and other Health Care Professionals.