Most people won’t be able to get the new COVID-19 vaccines until spring or summer, according to local public health officials /U.S. Air Force/Matthew Lotz
By Alison Steinbach | Arizona Republic
The state and Maricopa County opened up COVID-19 vaccine registration to people in Phase 1B Monday, but the process was not without hiccups, leaving some frustrated and unable to schedule their shot.
More appointments will be available as sites ramp up, and the state’s top health official encouraged people who are eligible to get vaccinated to “just keep trying.”
For many Arizonans, the vaccine can’t come soon enough.
State health director Dr. Cara Christ said on Friday she is “not happy with the speed” of vaccine distribution to date, but said that process will be escalating in the coming weeks as the state receives more doses and allocate them to more locations.
More than 151,800 Arizonans have received the COVID-19 vaccine as of Monday. The state expects to have received a total of 581,425 doses by this week.
In Maricopa County, the website server facilitating online signups was overwhelmed soon after it launched early Monday morning.
The county public health department tweeted to ask people to hold off trying to access the site.
