Pharmacies should be included in any COVID-19 vaccine booster campaign, according to the Irish Pharmacy Union.
The IPU has criticised Health Minister Stephen Donnelly and the HSE for failure to include them in the delivery of booster jabs.
Darragh O'Loughlin is general-secretary of the IPU.
He told Breakfast Briefing the previous uptake in pharmacies shows they should be included now.
"Pharmacists had been included in the original plans, published over Christmas last year, as COVID-19 vaccinators and had fully expected to be involved from the beginning of the vaccination programme.
"But then were excluded until the summer.
"When we did start vaccinating we saw tremendous demand from people to get their vaccine in a local pharmacy - pharmacies were inundated with people looking to get vaccinated.
"At this stage several hundred thousand vaccines have been done in pharmacies, and as we're reaching the end of the programme there are still people... coming forward into pharmacies everyday to get vaccinated who hadn't been vaccinated so far.
"It makes perfect sense that we would be included in the booster programme - pharmacists are vaccinating, there are over 1,000 pharmacies in Ireland delivering COVID vaccination every week.
"And it makes no sense that as we move into the booster phase of the programme we wouldn't be involved in delivering those boosters".
However he says plans referenced on Wednesday contained no mention of pharmacies.
"It looks like GPs are going to be expected to pick up the bulk of the work - despite the fact that the GP system is already under such pressure - and vaccination centres will be used as well.
"We obviously aren't saying vaccination centres shouldn't be used, and we aren't saying GPs shouldn't be involved.
"We're just saying that in a programme of this size and a campaign of this size, where we will want 800,000 people between the ages of 60 upwards to get vaccinated with a booster dose, it makes no sense to exclude 1,000 vaccination locations around the country".
Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan has said it is not a guarantee that booster shots will be rolled out to the general population.
While the Taoiseach Micheál Martin said rolling out the doses outside of vulnerable groups will be a "very important" part of the COVID-19 response.
It was confirmed on Tuesday that booster shots will be given to everyone aged over 60.
Some ministers have voiced surprise that boosters have yet to be recommended for healthcare workers, while it is also unclear whether there will be a population-wide booster campaign.
