The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
‘Soft launch’ of next phase causes confusion
NORWALK — Phase 1B of the coronavirus vaccination rollout is slated to start Monday, but some people in that category were able to register and receive their first dose of the shot earlier this week, causing confusion for local officials.
According to Maura Fitzgerald, who heads COVID-related communications for the Connecticut Department of Public Health, the state gave vaccine providers the OK on Jan. 11 to begin administering the vaccine to people over age 75, one of the groups eligible under phase 1B.
Providers who had room in their schedules after phase 1A patients were advised to reach out to those eligible under phase 1B to avoid wasting vaccine doses. This acted as a “soft launch” of phase 1B, which only officially begins next week, Fitzgerald said.
Norwalk officials say they were surprised when a vaccination clinic held on Tuesday at the Norwalk Senior Center for people in phase 1A was filled with appointment slots for people in phase 1B.
“We saw the appointment slots were filling up, and believed it to be from those in phase 1A trying to get vaccinated before the list expanded,” city spokesperson Josh Morgan said. “We were not going to cancel their appointments, as they met the phase 1B guidelines outlined by the state.”
Morgan said it was unclear
how these people gained access to and were allowed to register through the federal government’s Vaccine Administration Management System before it was publicly available. When Gov. Ned Lamont announced the eligibility expansion Monday, towns were told more guidance would become available later in the week.
Fairfield published a link to a COVID-19 vaccine survey earlier this week for people currently eligible for
the vaccine, according to a Facebook post from First Selectman Brenda Kupchick. If the survey determined a user was eligible for the vaccine, it enabled the Fairfield Health Department to upload them into VAMS. Within 24 hours, each individual receives an email from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/VAMS telling them to register and select a vaccination appointment.
One Norwalk couple who spoke to Hearst Connecticut
Media said they were able to register through this link and received an email from the CDC stating they were designated in a priority group for immunization. From there, they scheduled a same-day vaccination appointment at the Norwalk Senior Center and their second doses for next month.
Other cities were left to create their own methods of collecting patient information. Arthur Augustyn, spokesperson for the mayor’s
office in Stamford, said the city received “no instruction” from the state on how to implement vaccines in phase 1B.
The city managed to find and vaccinate fewer than 20 people so far eligible under phase 1B as an effort to save vaccine doses when someone in phase 1A didn’t show up for their scheduled appointment. The vaccine vial includes 10 doses which must be used within several hours of opening, he said.
After the governor’s guidance, Stamford unveiled a Google Doc form on Tuesday to not only allow qualified residents sign up to get vaccinated, but help the city find people to take extra doses should they become available. Augustyn said over 4,500 people have signed up so far. Those who are currently eligible will be called for appointments at random should extra doses of the vaccine become available, he said.
Augustyn emphasized the list is not first come, first serve, but more of a lottery system to allow for more equitable distribution.
“We had vaccines that were going to go bad so we wanted a way to get it somebody,” Augustyn said. “We came up with our own system out of necessity.”
Morgan said Norwalk launched a new COVID-19 vaccine resources hub when the VAMS portal went public Wednesday night. The hub contains the latest information regarding vaccines, details on how residents can register and make an appointment for a vaccine, and the latest news on vaccine eligibility.
“There are still limited doses of the vaccine,” Morgan said. “We have requested 1,000 doses for next week, but it remains unclear today how much we will receive from the state. We hope to hold a ‘closed clinic’ specifically for Norwalk seniors next week.”