SANDY, Utah – The Salt Lake County Health Department apologized for the way the vaccines were distributed at Mountain America Expo Center on Saturday.
The waiting time increased to almost three hours for thousands of people who had an appointment to be vaccinated.
The photos show a line of people aged 70 and over leaving the vaccination post. Inside, the video shows a slow line as people waited for hours.
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Although none of them wanted to be filmed for fear of disturbing their loved ones, several people wrote to FOX 13 expressing outrage.
One woman wrote, “We were put in hell” and “I can’t believe that the elderly are being treated this way”.
Another wrote, “There must be a better way to handle this. Find out.”
Some people told FOX 13 that they left frustrated without getting the vaccine.
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“We certainly understand the frustration and apologize for the longer waiting time that day,” said Salt Lake County Health Department spokesman Nicholas Rupp.
Rupp told FOX 13 that the vaccine center ended the week with about 1,000 extra doses. They must be used immediately or discarded, so the team started inviting 1,000 elderly people to the waiting list. Rupp said that approximately 2,000 people have scheduled appointments for Saturday.
“It was an important choice that we made to use these doses of vaccine, put them in our arms and ensure that they were not wasted. But it caused longer waiting times, ”said Rupp.
In Utah County, the opposite happened – 250 consultations were still open on Monday afternoon.