Connecticut officials say the massive expansion on Monday for COVID vaccination eligibility, which has resulted in some not being able to find an appointment available for months, will not harm the rest of the state’s implementation plan.
Recognizing the frustrations he heard from some of those 55 and older who reported having difficulty finding an appointment when they became eligible to apply on Monday, Governor Ned Lamont and his government continued to ask for patience and ensured that more appointments will be made. available soon.
Lamont said that adjusting the state’s vaccination schedule after the first day of expanded eligibility “would be premature.”
“I think we are finding that we are receiving additional doses of vaccine,” he said. “Obviously, we will know more in the next week or so. And … I think you will be able to fill in the necessary vaccines in the next three weeks. “
The number of nominations made on Monday was not immediately available, but state officials estimated it to be “tens of thousands”.
The state was prepared for an increase in the volume of its vaccine helpline, doubling its call center staff to expand on Monday, when those between 55 and 64 years old, as well as school and daycare staff, became eligible. In all, about 610,000 people became eligible after subtracting people in that age group who had been vaccinated in previous rounds.
State officials expect about 365,000 of the newly eligible to seek vaccines. Connecticut providers should be able to obtain that number in about three weeks at expected supply levels, but some received consultations in April because of the way the system matched people with doses.
The first day’s experience seemed confusing.
When registrations opened at 12:01 pm on Monday, Cheryl O’Brien said her husband connected to the Vaccine Administration Management System, but only found an appointment about 100 miles from her home on April 14. a local provider at the end of the day and we were able to schedule appointments in March.
Helen Barry, a resident of Danbury, logged in at about 6 am, and the first appointment she was able to find was at the end of April.
“The quickest I was able to make an appointment was at the end of April at a location about 30 kilometers away. All other locations had no vacancies available, ”said Barry, who is due to receive his first dose on April 26 in Shelton.
John Roche, who also lives in Danbury, was more fortunate.
“I stayed up until midnight to try to make an appointment the minute I became eligible. … I was lucky to get an appointment this Thursday in Danbury, ”said Roche.
25 percent for targeted postal codes
There were also technical problems that people faced, such as Walgreens not updating its online registration form to include the new groups that were eligible on Monday.
“We are working to update our agenda to include educators and other eligible populations in Connecticut,” said a Walgreens spokesman in a statement. “We apologize for the inconvenience as we work to vaccinate our most vulnerable populations as quickly as possible.”
Lamont announced last week the move to an age-based approach and prioritizing school and day care workers over essential frontline workers and those with underlying medical conditions who thought they would be next in line.
The governor said the move would help streamline and streamline the process.
Connecticut was expected to receive about 140,000 doses of vaccine this week, including 40,000 of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine that was approved this weekend.
“We have 500,000 people going for those 100,000 doses, so you can see that there is going to be a little queue now,” said Lamont, using rough approximations. “If we had done it any other way, you would have 1.8 million people trying the same number of doses.”
State officials said on Monday that they asked providers to ensure that at least 25 percent of new vaccines go to vulnerable communities. As part of that effort, the state Department of Public Health identified 50 CEPs in Connecticut that are among the top 25% of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s social vulnerability index, which assesses factors such as poverty and housing density.
“We are aggressively reaching these communities. We will allocate 25% of the vaccine to these communities to ensure that they are vaccinated, even if we have to work hard to ensure that they are vaccinated, ”said Lamont.
Lamont’s office said that DPH will track data on race and ethnicity of vaccines administered in this area and provide periodic reports on that effort.
Lamont will ease restrictions
Amid progress with vaccination and trends in COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations, Lamont said he hopes to make announcements later this week about business and travel restrictions – after coordinating with the region’s governors.
Connecticut reported a positivity rate of 2.35 percent over the weekend, when hospitalizations dropped to 431. There were an additional 29 deaths recorded, however, increasing the number of deaths in the state to 7,651.
Lamont said it may take a week for the vaccine registration process to be smoothed out for those who are still looking for appointments.
“I ask you to be patient,” he said. “Again, if you can work remotely or don’t have a lot of urgency about it, give others a chance to move on. I think it would certainly be appropriate. “
Max Reiss, a spokesman for the governor, said the appointments available on Monday had not yet taken into account the new doses of Johnson & Johnson that may arrive in Connecticut as early as Tuesday.
“Based on the number of vaccines we are receiving, the number of eligible people who have not been vaccinated and the estimated rates of eligible people who wish to get the vaccine, we are very confident that anyone in the 55 to 64 age group would do so you want to get a vaccine in the next three weeks you should have that opportunity, ”said Lamont’s chief operating officer, Josh Geballe.
Connecticut Veterans Administration medical centers announced on Monday that they have started offering vaccines to all VA patients, regardless of age.
“Due to the constant supply and strong interest from our veterans, we feel confident to abandon age restrictions to offer the vaccine to any registered veteran interested in receiving it,” said VA Connecticut director Al Montoya.