COVID-19 Vaccine Providers are required to successfully enroll in a federal vaccine distribution program which instructs proper handling and administration of the vaccine. They are also required by federal law to report specific information for each dose they are in Vaccine Administration Management System (VAMS), a secure national database that states can access to monitor vaccine administration. It is important to note that the numbers in VAMS, the way they are recorded, and the timing of when they can be / are registered affect the amount of vaccines VAMS says hospitals have available. Also, many of the available doses are for Phase 1a individuals with appointments scheduled in the near future.