New Haven Register (New Haven, CT)
Yale New Haven books 5,000 vaccine appointments in 90 minutes
NEW HAVEN — As people age 55 to 64 became eligible to receive vaccines for the coronavirus Monday, Yale New Haven Health opened up 5,000 vaccination appointments Monday morning, according to Dr. Ohm Deshpande, vice president of population health.
They were booked within 90 minutes.
Across Greater New Haven, health districts and municipalities worked to handle the influx of requests for vaccination appointments, to staff clinics and to set up for wide vaccinations of teachers and other school personnel.
Deshpande said the health system would work to balance the need for educators and eligible members of the general public to be vaccinated in the coming days. It’s working with schools in New Haven, Bridgeport and Greenwich, among other places in the state, he said.
The health system has the theoretical capacity to vaccinate approximately 40,000 people per day, Deshpande said. But, although more is being shipped to the state, it doesn’t have sufficient vaccine to book that many appointments.
“There are going to be sufficient appointments; they’re just being released in waves,” said Deshpande. “It’s not about capacity. It’s just about how much vaccine we get.”
The first shipment of a newlyapproved vaccine from Johnson & Johnson is expected to come in mid-week, he said.
State officials have estimated that about 610,000 people have become eligible for the vaccine with the latest expansion.
The massive expansion of the state’s COVID-19 vaccine eligibility launched Monday, inundating phone and online registration systems, but state officials said the process will “smooth out.”
Mayor Justin Elicker advised residents to be patient, but said he believes that the health care infrastructure in the city is prepared for the change.
Elicker said vaccination sites in New Haven should be able to handle demand, but getting people into the system to book appointments appropriately is of greater concern.
“Given that all health care providers have been vaccinating for some time now, we anticipate that the logistics of the sites aren’t as much of an issue as managing the number of new people that wish to get vaccinated. There are many different health care providers that are vaccinating which is a good thing, but it makes it confusing for people trying to find the soonest ... appointment,” said Elicker. “We are asking people to be patient.”
City spokesman Gage Frank said in a prior statement that residents wishing to book an appointment can call the state vaccination hotline at 877-918-2224 or the New Haven Health Department at 203-639-2245.
Vaccines also are available through a series of health care providers in the city, Frank said, including: the Yale New Haven Health System; Cornell Scott Hill Health Center; Fair Haven Community Health Care; Walgreens stores at 436 Whalley Ave., 88 York St. or 87 Foxon St.; and Walmart at 315 Foxon Blvd.
Fair Haven Community Health
Center is expected to open a mass vaccination site at Wilbur Cross High School beginning March 3, which then will be open Tuesdays through Fridays, Frank noted.
Dr. Everett Lamm, vice president of clinical affairs at Fair Haven Health, said the center expected to offer 250-300 appointments for school staffers daily at the new site, as well as openings for the public — a notable increase over its current capacity.
The center’s efforts Monday had gone well, with a noticeable uptick in calls and emails to book appointments, he said.
“I encourage (those frustrated by being unable to book an appointment) to hang in there,” said Lamm.
The city is expecting to begin vaccinating teachers and other school staffers, also newly eligible, on March 3 as well, Frank said.
Dave Cicarella, president of the New Haven Federation of Teachers, said the arrival of the new phase on Monday provided “a lot of relief” to the city’s teachers.
“We’ve been told for some time (vaccinations are) coming, but we never really had any date,” he said.
Sixteen schools are holding vaccination
clinics for their staff on March 3 and another 10 will hold clinics March 12. Cicarella said those efforts, plus various community clinics, mean teachers are feeling much more secure.
Currently, teachers for up to the fifth grade are teaching in-person, but the district will expand that to sixth through eighth grades on March 4.
Cicarella said the various dates for returning to schools made many teachers nervous or uncertain, but the inclusion of teachers in the new phase has alleviated many of those concerns. “Now we know exactly when it’s going to happen and where it’s going to happen,” he said.
Karen A. Wolujewicz, director of health for the Quinnipiack Valley Health District that covers North Haven, Hamden, Bethany and Woodbridge, said the health district did not hold a clinic Monday. It will continue its general population clinics for people 55 and older on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
However, Wolujewicz said the health district will hold extended hours for its Thursday clinic and has added a Saturday clinic to address the estimated 1,500 newly eligible educators and child care officials. This week, the district received its 400 first doses of the Moderna vaccine.
Gov. Ned Lamont also advised residents around the state to be patient Monday morning, saying on Twitter that appointments would open over the coming weeks.
“As CT’s vaccination program continues to expand, those who’ve become newly eligible may not be able to make appointments immediately due to limited supplies,” Lamont tweeted Monday morning. “We know people are eager, but it will take time to get everyone scheduled.”
Also in New Haven, officials at the Chapel Haven Schleifer Center in a letter Monday urged Lamont to expand vaccination eligibility to the majority of its adult residents, which include people with autism and developmental disabilities.
“Not only are individuals with autism or I/DD more susceptible to COVID-19, but many of these individuals have also disproportionally lost vital educational services, health care resources and experienced employment layoffs. Some individuals with autism or I/DD may also struggle with mask-wearing or adhering to social distancing guidelines,” said Chapel Haven President Michael Storz in a statement. “Taken together, the evidence emphasizes that it is critical to vaccinate this population as soon as possible to prevent further harm.” See more on city vaccination sites. The Health Department will be conducting vaccinations at the following school sites:
March 3:
L.W. Beecher School, 100 Jewell St.
Brennan-Rogers Magnet School, Wilmot Road
Celentano School, 400 Canner St. Conte West Hills Middle School, 511 Chapel St.
Christopher Columbus Family Academy, 255 Blatchley Ave.
John C. Daniels School, 569 Congress Ave.
East Rock Community Magnet
School, 133 Nash St.
Edgewood STEAM Magnet School, 737 Edgewood Ave.
Elm City Montessori School, 495 Blake St.
Hooker Elementary School, 180 Canner St.
Hooker Middle School, 691 Whitney Ave.
Benjamin Jepson Magnet School, 15 Lexington Ave.
Nathan Hale School, 480 Townsend Ave.
Barack Obama Magnet School, 69 Farnham Ave.
Ross Woodward School, 189 Barnes Ave.
Wexler-Grant School, 55 Foote St.
March 12:
Betsy Ross Arts Magnet School, 150 Kimberly Ave.
Cooperative Arts and Humanities High School, 177 College St.
ESUMS, 500 Boston Post Rd., West Haven
High School in the Community, 175 Water St.
Metropolitan Business Academy, 115 Water St.
New Haven Academy, 444
Orange St.
Riverside Education Academy, 103 Hallock Ave,
Sound School, 60 S. Water St. Quinnipiac School, 460 Lexington Ave.
West Rock STEAM Academy, 311 Valley St.
Partners offering vaccinations in the City of New Haven:
Yale New Haven Health System Visit the website or call: 833-ASKYNHH
Cornell Scott Hill Health Center Visit the website or call: 203-5033000
Fair Haven Community Health Care
Visit the website or call: 203-8714179
Walgreens (436 Whalley Ave., 88 York St., or 87 Foxon St.)
436 Whalley Ave.: 203-777-8001; 88 York St.: 203-752-9893; 87 Foxon St.: 203-469-3016.
Walmart (315 Foxon Blvd.)