Dutchess County Runs Out of New Vaccine Appointments in 3 Minutes
In just a few minutes all new COVID vaccine appointments were full. Dutchess County County Executive Marc Molinaro understands the outage and explains why.
On Tuesday at 4:22 p.m., Dutchess County officials confirmed this week’s COVID-19 allocation from New York State and opened new appointment slots for eligible individuals in Phase 1a and 1b as determined by New York State's Phased Distribution Plan.
At 4:25 p.m., Dutchess County officials sent out a second email confirming all appointments were booked. The county received 600 doses of COVID-19 vaccine this week from New York State, well below the distribution capacity in Dutchess County, officials said.
"We have the capacity to vaccinate thousands of people every week, but supply remains the issue. We will continue to push for more supply because we have the capacity to put a lot more shots in arms. But until greater supply is available, we urge everyone to try to remain patient and keep up the safety measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19," Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro said in a press release.
Many residents voiced their outrage on Facebook. A post on the Facebook group "COVID19 Dutchess County & Ulster County Resources" quickly received over 100 comments.
"Got the email at 4:23...click at 4:24... on 3 different browsers....spots full," one person commented.
Marc Molinaro follows the page and he responded to comments. Dutchess County has 25,000 residents who say they are eligible but received just 600 doses this week, Molinaro confirmed.
"We wish the State would allow a better system and the Federal and State Governments had more supply to get to us," Molinaro commented. "We have 600 doses to administer this week. That is all the State provided. Appointments can only be taken by those who are approved by the State and the 25,000 emails are to individuals who claim to meet those requirements."
New York State will receive more COVID vaccines over the next few weeks, but the difference isn't much when you look at the numbers.
KEEP READING
50 of Your Favorite Retail Chains That No Longer Exist
KEEP READING: Here are 50 of your favorite retail chains that no longer exist
50 Most Popular Brands