With all vaccines spoken for, Pinellas County no longer taking new appointments
* This story has been updated to reflect new developments
The Florida Department of Health in Pinellas County is no longer taking new appointments for the Covid-19 vaccine, health department officials announced Tuesday afternoon.
“Thank you for your interest in obtaining the Covid-19 vaccine at the Florida Department of Health in Pinellas County,” said a statement released by the DOH. “At this time, we are not accepting new appointments, as we have scheduled for our existing stocks of vaccine. Once additional doses of vaccine are received, we will open the reservations system to the public again. In the meantime, please continue to wear a mask, wash your hands frequently, maintain a social distance and stay at home if you are feeling sick. Thank you for your continued patience.”
Tuesday’s announcement followed a day filled with server errors and busy signals, which prompted the DOH to move the registration process for seniors seeking the vaccine to solely telephone appointments. The agency initially suspended phone and online registration Monday evening several hours after tweeting that they were “aware of the issues occurring with their registration system” and thanking people for their patience.
We are in the early phases of the vaccination program, and there will be more opportunities for vaccinations in the coming weeks and months. We appreciate your patience and understanding.
— FL Health Pinellas (@HealthyPinellas) January 4, 2021
But based on responses to that tweet, patience was in short supply.
You knew this was coming. You had the opportunity to design and test and be prepared. This is the biggest Health Emergency in a century and you were caught ill-prepared. I’m sorry but it’s not defensible. You have a responsibility to the residents of this County.
— Linda Larrivee (@LindaLarrivee) January 4, 2021
What a frustrating day for so many Pinellas County residents! Please give clear updates throughout the day. For example: when website will be up and running, hours of operation, how many appointments are available.
— Sue G (@SueG42911802) January 5, 2021
Kevin King, chief of policy and public engagement for St. Pete Mayor Rick Kriseman, said Kriseman is “frustrated” by the rollout of the vaccine.
“The state has to do better,” he said in an email to the Catalyst.
Tuesday morning, the DOH posted that to simplify the vaccination process, a temporary telephone registration method has been implemented that will be in place until a permanent solution is brought online. Hillsborough County, which also faced similar issues Monday, has also gone to phone-only appointment scheduling.
To make an appointment in Pinellas County, people 65 and older can call (727) 824-6900 and select Option 4 or call (727) 824-6931. From there, an operator will ask for specific information including name, phone number and date of birth. The operator will then work with callers to get them scheduled for a date, time and location for their first dose of vaccine.
The DOH urged patience due to high call volume and lengthy wait times. Several people commented online that the phones weren’t working, were ringing busy or going unanswered.
8:52, 61 attempts to call these numbers… geez
— Dr. D. M. Everett (@EverettDoreen) January 5, 2021
However, some commenters encouraged empathy and understanding for those who are doing the best they can in an unprecedented situation.
Be kind to your technicians, please. It’s a tough job. They are probably working with infrastructure unequipped for the volumes and expansion is not always an easy effort. Cloud technology would make this easier.
— Linda Sargent (@bawlmerhon) January 4, 2021
People who were able to register online Monday will have their appointments honored, according to DOH officials. They also said they’d work with anyone who scheduled an appointment through a fraudulent Eventbrite site that popped up online Monday, though their reservations are not considered valid.
As vaccines continue to roll out, health officials encourage people to continue to practice social distancing, hand washing and mask wearing, especially as the number of confirmed cases are on the rise. Thirteen new deaths due to Covid-19 were reported Monday, bringing the cumulative county total since March to 47,207 cases and 1,079 deaths. The two-week percent positivity rate now stands at 9.58 percent after five consecutive days in the double digits.
Kathleen Steele
January 5, 2021at6:39 pm
It’s been almost a year since Covid-19 reared its ugly head. Plenty of time for vaccine scenarios to be proposed and tested before the vaccine actually became available. There is NO excuse for the p*** poor programs rolled out by DHS 1/4/21 . I’m 76 years old, immunocomprised, followed all the suggestions and still can’t get a vaccination. I guess I will have to move to a state where the governor doesn’t have his head in the ground to be taken care of.
Wayne Fraser
January 5, 2021at4:59 pm
I was one of the many thousands of people over 65 who tried diligently yesterday to make an appointment for Covid vacceination at the Pinellas County Health Dept. I was never even able to get into the Health Dept web site or telephone system. They have FAILED miserably in meeting the public’s expectations. Who is accountable for that? And, now, after only one day they find that the entire Pinellas County allotment of the vaccine is gone or committed. What??? That is absurd. Is anyone looking into this? I suggest that the private sector (such as CVS and Walgreens) be allowed to dispense the Covid vaccine, so it can be done properly.
Richard Peck
January 5, 2021at4:43 pm
I started calling the Pinellas DOH line at 9 am(Tuesday). By noon I had called 47 times with a busy signal. Finally I got into the phone tree and listened to the rather long message hundreds of time, the phone sitting on a table in front of me. I’m clumsy and did not want to accidentally end the call. After 3 hours and 33 minutes of listening, a technician answered. 10 minutes later I had an appt for Jan 15.
Luck and perseverance and patience……lots of all 3!
Linda Modry
January 5, 2021at4:43 pm
Perhaps the health department should consult with Tropicana or the Rays on how to sign up people to get vaccines, they deal with large groups often. As an elderly person it has been so frustrating to get messages that the phone number is not in service when I know I dialed the right number. Fundraisers have phone banks, perhaps they can also be consulted. Many people are like me, scared and frustrated. I just wish someone could take my name and number, put me on a list, and tell me when it’s my turn. Communication is very important and the health department needs to do better.