This is a picture taken from inside the Covid vaccination site in Yonkers. Although it just opened up for any qualified New York State resident to make a vaccination appointment, there are no slots open anymore. Now that we have the vaccines to stop the virus, we do not have a unified system in any state which allows qualified people to do efficient "one stop shopping" for a vaccination site. This is inexcusable. Each of the 50 states (plus DC and other US territories) could have hired Google, Microsoft or Amazon to design a site which would make the headache of getting a vaccination appointment as easy as the vaccination itself.
Most people had no problem with "essential workers" getting "first dibs" on vaccinations. Doctors, nurses, and other health care professionals on the front line deserve to be first on line for the shots. Hardly anyone had problems with infirm residents of nursing homes getting a high priority for their vaccinations. But once it came to the general public, both seniors (65+) and people with comorbidities (Diabetes, Hypertension, COPD, etc.) things started getting screwed up.
In New York, we have a state run web site for mass vaccination centers run by the state. New York City has its own site. And drug stores (and drug store chains) have their own appointment scheduling systems. In some cases, people are calling health care facilities directly to find out if they are giving shots to specific classes of people. Total confusion reigns here. I know one person from a Northern NYC exurb who drove to the South Bronx for her shot - after being given a phone number to call. It's partially what technology one has access to and who you know that determines when (or if) you will get vaccinated before Summer begins. And we have it good in New York. Many other states have it worse!
It could be much worse than to be in New York. Florida's governor has used his powers to distribute the vaccine to take care of white suburban voters who are likely to vote for Republicans in the next election. Texas is "reopening" way too early, and will likely trigger a new "super spreader" event once the last of the Covid restrictions are lifted. The "Red States" acted as if the virus wouldn't harm them, and they have some of the highest viral transmission rates in the nation, if not the world. It would make much more sense to vaccinate as large as possible a group of people before starting a slow reopening. But then, these states largely voted for Trump - and they, like lemmings, will march off a cliff if led there by a foolish leader.
Right now, I have a vaccination appointment scheduled for next month. If I can, I will try to get an earlier appointment, so I can can socialize in safety by the beginning of Summer. Hopefully, all of my readers will be able to do the same.
