CT Working To Make Coronavirus Vaccine Appointments Easier
CONNECTICUT — Connecticut surpassed 300,000 total coronavirus vaccines administered, but demand continues to greatly outstrip supply.
There have been more than 308,000 coronavirus vaccine doses administered in Connecticut with about 266,000 of that being first doses, Gov. Ned Lamont said in a Monday news conference.
“This is a race, we are racing to get as many people vaccinated as quickly as we can ahead of what could be this super contagious strain,” Lamont said, referring to the U.K. coronavirus variant.
Around 7.4 percent of the state’s population has received at least one dose as of Monday.
Connecticut has put together a web page for coronavirus vaccine questions regarding eligibility, how to make an appointment and how to locate vaccine administration sites.
The bottleneck continues to be supply of doses. There are more than 120 vaccine administration sites in the state and altogether providers request 150,000 doses per week, but Connecticut’s weekly share is just shy of 50,000 first doses, Lamont said.
Around 27 percent of residents 75 years old and older have received their first dose, according to Lamont. The state forecasts that it will take at least another two weeks of focusing on the 75 and older population before moving to eligibility down to 65 and over.
The United Way of Connecticut had added 75 staff members to help man the coronavirus vaccine line, which is meant to help residents who are having difficulty or are unable to access the online vaccine appointment system. United Way of Connecticut will also partner with senior centers to help people 75 and older with appointments, CEO Lisa Tepper Bates said.
More than 42,000 vaccine appointments have been scheduled to date through the phone system, Bates said. The phone appointment system makes appointments to the East Hartford mass vaccination site located at an unused Pratt and Whitney runway with Bristol Hospital’s location being added Monday as an alternative.
The phone line will soon offer several other vaccination appointment sites beyond the two locations, Bates said.
United Way of Connecticut has fielded more than 97,000 calls about the coronavirus pandemic, but beyond that there has also been staggering growth in calls about other needs as well, Bates said. There has been a 530 percent increase for basic needs and 352 percent increase for emergency food compared to pre-pandemic levels. There is also a 70 percent increase for housing and shelter needs.
This article originally appeared on the Across Connecticut Patch
