Older Californians still struggle to get vaccine
For eight days in a row, David Griffin, 67, woke up at 3 or 4 a.m. to search for a rare, coveted COVID-19 vaccine appointment for himself and his wife, 70, who has multiple sclerosis.
Two slots he found, at a Ralph’s supermarket, were abruptly cancelled. Finally, Griffin secured two appointments next week at a mass vaccination site at Dodger Stadium.
“It’s been extraordinarily difficult,” said Griffin, a Los Angeles general contractor who runs a company that serves people with disabilities. “The process has been tedious, frustrating, stressful and dishonest.”
Griffin’s exasperation is shared by millions of Californians as the chaotic vaccine rollout continues. State officials have drawn widespread criticism for opening vaccinations to everyone 65 or older before local providers were ready with enough vaccine and staff to serve them.
California has consistently lagged behind nearly every other state in its COVID-19 immunization rate, especially large-population states. In California, 4,135 out of every 100,000 residents have been vaccinated, compared with 5,773 in Florida, 5,739 in New York, 5,327 in Texas and 4,502 in Illinois. Only Nevada, Wisconsin and Idaho have a slower pace.
Since vaccinations began nationwide in mid-december, nearly 1.8 million Californians have been vaccinated as of today, according to the state Department of Public Health. Nearly 4 million doses have been shipped to local health departments and large health providers, with some supply reserved for second doses.
California is trying to manage the largest mass vaccination campaign in its history, hampered by inconsistent federal guidance under the Trump administration and inadequate funding for supplies and staff — while simultaneously grappling with one of the nation’s most severe infection surges.
“What we’ve seen over the past year is so little reliable federal guidance that everyone’s learned to fend for themselves. With something this complicated and nuanced, that doesn’t work very well,” said Dr. Bob Wachter, chair of the department of medicine at UC San Francisco.
Limited supply
As in other states, California’s vaccine allotment remains limited while consumer demand soars. When Riverside County released 3,900 immunization appointments online Thursday, they were snapped up in 32 minutes.
State leaders are uncertain about their vaccine allotments after learning last week that a federal reserve supply they had counted on didn’t exist. As a result, health departments and local hospitals may learn of their allotments only a week in advance, complicating the scheduling of appointments.
It’s not just California, though. Other states have faced the same problems. Florida on Thursday restricted COVID vaccinations to permanent or seasonal residents to avoid a wave of “vaccine tourism.” New York postponed thousands of appointments because of a vaccine shipping delay. Texas is grappling with a cumbersome data tracking system that has slowed vaccinations.
But public health experts say some of California’s problems are self-inflicted.
The state has left setting up appointments and administering the vaccine to its 58 county and three city health departments — Long Beach, Pasadena and Berkeley — that in turn have partnered with local health providers. Although the state now allows anyone 65 and older to be vaccinated, counties may set their own eligibility requirements depending on how much vaccine they have.
That means someone 65 or older can get vaccinated in one county, but only those 75 and older are eligible in another. Rural Mendocino County, for example, is only vaccinating its 75+ residents. Complicating things even more, some health systems within a county will only immunize those over age 75 for now because of their vaccine supply.
“The balkanization of the distribution of the vaccine has contributed greatly to the consternation and chaos the general public feels,” said Dr. John Swartzberg, an infectious disease specialist at UC Berkeley. “What county you’re in will determine what age group is getting the vaccine…what health system you’re in will determine if you can get the vaccine. The questions just go on and on.”
State leaders are uncertain about their vaccine allotments after learning last week that a federal reserve supply they had counted on didn’t exist. Californians can sign up for vaccination appointments through two routes: Their local health department or their major health care providers, such as Kaiser and UCLA Health, that largely operate in urban areas. Some pharmacies are vaccinating people, too.