MADISON, Wisconsin – The race to get a scheduled appointment for the COVID-19 vaccine was marked by stiff competition on Monday, when millions of Wisconsin residents became eligible for the 1C group.
Group 1C includes anyone aged 16 or over with a high-risk medical condition.
The UW Health team already called individual patients to help schedule appointments for those eligible, but with the increase in the number of people who became eligible on Monday, he switched to a self-registration model.
Dr. Jeff Pothof said that this model can help them get through the process more efficiently.
“Don’t be discouraged. Don’t be discouraged. If you call a website and it says, ‘Sorry, we’re out,’ try, try again, and sooner or later, you’ll find someone who has a dose you can take, ”said Pothof.
SSM Health Vice President of Pharmacy Services, Mo Kharbat, said he has received thousands of calls an hour from people trying to schedule appointments.
The provider recommends calling your hotline (608-250-1222) repeatedly to schedule an appointment. Kharbat said that SSM Health is scheduling people with several weeks off because they are always on bookings of at least 10 days.
Madison Dane County Public Health COVID Vice-Vaccine Tess Ellens said the sheer volume of people they are dealing with has supported them in the scheduling process.
“We are still working on level 1B,” said Ellens.
It may take a week or more before the PHMDC can start programming those in group 1C.
If you visit the PHMDC website, you can find a pharmacy, vaccination clinic and healthcare provider near you and search for the place and time that is best for you.
You can also access the DHS website and find a map of vaccine providers. Click on one and find the next available day and time.
There, you can also find the state’s vaccine registry to confirm that you are eligible and then help to link you to a location with available vaccines.
“Everything was fine for group 1B, but with group 1C the number of individuals qualified for the vaccine is much, much higher,” said Kharbat.
Between SSM, UW Health and Public Health, they can schedule and vaccinate around 20,000 a week at all of their clinics, but staying patient is critical.
“The supply is far from sufficient to schedule individuals who qualify for the vaccine,” said Kharbat.
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