After a series of safety issues were raised at the only super vaccination site in western Massachusetts, Springfield Mayor Domenic J. Sarno announced a series of changes to the site.
“Speaking to Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito and director of the curative website Dean Shultis several times yesterday and this morning about better and more timely customer service logistics for our elderly citizens in Springfield and Western Mass,” said Sarno in a statement . “I’m sure that these changes / adjustments will be made as soon as possible.”
As of now, Sarno said that the vaccination post located at Eastfield Mall will receive additional personnel to help control social distance abroad with the National Guard also being deployed to assist in the operation.
Signage notifications will be installed so that people can wait in their vehicles without having to stay outside.
Most importantly, for many who have family members over 75, the elderly will be allowed to wait inside the mall for appointments.
On Monday, MassLive reported on long waiting times for older residents. Some have been waiting in the cold for more than two hours. With snow falling and a temperature of 25 degrees Celsius on Tuesday, the lines are still present outside the mall.
Although Eastfield Mall is within the city limits of Springfield, the vaccination site is overseen by the state and operated by a private company, Curative. It is one of several supervaccination sites in Massachusetts across the state, the only large-scale site west of Worcester.
At Springfield’s Eastfield Mall, hundreds of people wait outside in the cold. The temperature is 22 degrees and some over 80 have been waiting for more than 30 minutes. (Douglas Hook / MassLive)
MassLive contacted Curative on Monday about concerns at the mall. A spokesman reported from the location that they are working they had to accommodate those who passed through the doors, but are not responsible for those outside.
Vaccine distribution began in the United States on December 14. Currently, more than 59 million doses have been administered, reaching 18% of the total population of the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The US currently administers about 1.4 million injections per day.
In Massachusetts, just over 1 million doses were administered to those in Phase 1, ranking 38th in percentage of the population and 46th in percentage of doses administered, according to CDC data.
Sarno said that operators at Eastfield Mall, Curative will be subject to a review of their systems approach to contacting and updating seniors about their appointments.
“We must always be aware of the needs of our elderly, especially during these challenging and surreal times to defeat the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic,” added Sarno.
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