Acknowledging that “many residents are frustrated,” Arlington officials on Friday urged patience with the county distribution of vaccines, calling for more doses to the state.
The province has faced criticism for what some see as a slow rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine, despite receiving its first shipment of vaccines before Christmas.
Earlier this week, vaccinations took place in Arlington at a rate of just over 200 a day. At that rate, it would take more than two years to give each adult resident of the county a single dose of the two-dose vaccine.
In the past two days, the pace has accelerated, with more than 400 doses being administered each day. By Friday morning, a total of 4,573 doses had been administered and 550 people in Arlington had been fully vaccinated.
Still, in recent days, ARLnow has received a barrage of emails from people saying Arlington should move faster, given the more than 3,000 deaths from the coronavirus per day across the country and the increasing prevalence of a more contagious strain of virus .
“The inability to reach a more reasonable speed is terrible,” one person said. “People are dying.”
In a press release today, the county said it is “moving fast to increase access for eligible Arlingtonians.”
“This weekend, the Arlington County Public Health Division will hold two clinics to vaccinate 1,800 individuals from the Childcare / PreK-12 teacher / staff priority group identified in Phase 1b,” the press release said.
But even that effort is not without controversy.
As ARLnow first reported on Thursday, the county-led registration process for Arlington Public Schools employees to sign up for vaccinations had failed, with many not receiving the emails and links needed to register. Some of those who managed to register and receive a confirmation email the first time were then told that it was not actually a confirmation of an appointment.
“You received the WordPress confirmation because of a flaw in the technology that allowed more appointments to be booked than were available,” school officials were told this afternoon in an email from Arlington’s public health department.
Some who received that initial confirmation were unable to secure a spot when registration reopened last night, we’re told.
“There were only a limited number of slots available,” APS spokesperson Frank Bellavia explains today. “Public Health last night sent an email to staff who have not received an appointment to schedule one of the remaining available slots. Those remaining slots were filled this morning. “
Ryan Hudson, Arlington public health spokesman, said the county is now waiting for more vaccine supplies and cannot say with certainty when the rest of the APS employees will be vaccinated.
“We cannot provide a specific date by which all APS teachers and staff will be vaccinated, as the ability to schedule appointments depends on greater distribution of vaccines from Virginia,” he said.
“Unfortunately, the expansion in the number of people eligible for Phase 1b does not increase Arlington’s limited supply of vaccine doses,” added Hudson. “The district began drafting its distribution plan and infrastructure in 2020. Arlington is ready to speed up appointments once the district receives additional doses from Virginia.”
Dr. Reuben Varghese, the county’s health director, told the Arlington County Board earlier this week that the county was still in the process of setting up an infrastructure for mass vaccinations. Asked by ARLnow why that process did not start earlier, County Board Chairman Matt de Ferranti said much work had been done leading up to the arrival of the first vaccine doses.
“Freezers were ordered, [a] website developed and we already had an existing relationship with Virginia Hospital Center, ”he said today. “Many other infrastructural steps have been taken, but they are in demand [for the vaccine] exceeds the offer so far. Other jurisdictions in Northern Virginia and DC are also facing similar challenges. We are working to get as much vaccine as possible as soon as possible. We ask for as much patience as people can find. “
In this afternoon’s press release, the Ferranti defended the efforts of Varghese and County Manager Mark Schwartz.
“As the situation continues to rapidly change, our County Manager and the Director of Health are working hard to secure vaccines and get them in arms,” he said. “The Council has assured them that we will provide all the resources needed to make this happen.”
Other local jurisdictions have also said the COVID-19 vaccine is scarce.
“The vaccine supply in the US is still very limited and is expected to increase gradually in the coming months. Fairfax Health asks for your patience in this process, ”the City of Falls Church, which uses services from the Fairfax County Health Department, tweeted today.
According to Bloomberg, Virginia is at the bottom of the US states when it comes to the use of the available vaccines.
Meanwhile, President-elect Joe Biden said today that the incoming government plans to use FEMA and the National Guard to set up vaccination clinics across the country as it works to get more vaccines from local pharmacies.
The province’s full press release is below.
Arlington County welcomes Governor Ralph Northam’s decision to make the COVID-19 vaccine available to more Virginians, and the county’s health and government officials are rapidly ramping up access for eligible Arlingtonians.
On Thursday, January 14, Northam announced that all Virginians aged 65 and older and those aged 16-64 with underlying medical conditions will be moved to Phase 1b under the Commonwealth’s vaccination plan.
“We are grateful that the state is making the COVID-19 vaccine more accessible to Virginians who need and want it,” said Dr. Aaron Miller, Director of Public Safety Communications and Emergency Management. “Right now, every available dose we have has a corresponding arm to go into. And we continue to support the Commonwealth’s efforts to release more vaccines. “
“The top priority of the county government is to ensure the rapid, efficient and equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines,” said Matt de Ferranti, chairman of the Arlington County Board. “We know many residents are frustrated, and we understand and share your concerns. As of Monday, there have been rapid changes in eligibility within the priority groups, including the addition of 65-74 year olds and 16-64 year olds with underlying medical conditions to Stage 1b. We also get far fewer vaccines than the Arlingtonians demand. We ask you to be as patient as possible as we are urgently working on this critical challenge. “
This weekend, the Arlington County Public Health Division will hold two clinics to vaccinate 1,800 individuals from the Childcare / PreK-12 Teachers / Staff identified in Phase 1b priority group, including Arlington Public Schools (APS). People in this group who cannot make an appointment for this weekend will have the opportunity to make appointments as more vaccine becomes available.
Virginia Hospital Center (VHC), which is already working with the County to operate a vaccination clinic for residents over the age of 75, is working to increase scheduling capabilities when more vaccine supplies become available.
As Arlington County Public Health begins to receive guidance from the Virginia Department of Health on the additional people who qualify for Phase 1b, work continues to vaccinate the many people who pre-registered in recent days.
The expansion in the number of people eligible for Phase 1b does not increase Arlington’s limited supply of vaccine doses. The ability to schedule appointments depends on greater distribution of Virginia vaccine. Nationwide distribution of each COVID-19 vaccine is controlled by the CDC and the United States Department of Defense. Arlington County is willing to speed up and expedite appointments once the County receives additional doses from Virginia.
In the meantime, people 65-74 years old and people 16-64 years old with a high-risk medical condition or disability that increases their risk of serious illness from COVID-19 can register in advance and will be notified when appointments are available come as vaccine distribution increases
Arlington employers of key primary care workers (as identified in Phase 1b) who want a COVID-19 vaccine must still pre-register with the Arlington County Public Health Division.
“As the situation continues to rapidly change, our County Manager and the Director of Health are working hard to secure vaccines and get them in arms,” de Ferranti said. “The board has assured them that we will provide all the resources needed to make this happen.”
Matt Blitz contributed to this report.