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There were a number of disappointed residents who were turned away from a vaccination clinic on Friday at the State University of New York at Fredonia.
Officials with the Chautauqua County Health Department said the issue stemmed from a glitch in the state’s web site. “Only individuals who secured appointments before 10 p.m. (Thursday) will actually have an appointment,” the county statement noted. “If you secured an appointment after 10 p.m. (Thursday) you should disregard your appointment.”
Many, however, did not receive that notice. With ticket in hand, at least one area resident shared his frustrations after showing up at the Steele Hall location.
“I arrived only to be told that 1,000 appointments were made for the 100 shots that were actually on hand, and that I should ‘Try again,'” the Dunkirk resident said.
Another Fredonia resident said she was pleased her mother received a vaccine. “She was one of the lucky ones whose appointment was not impacted by the overbooking of appointments due to the lack of vaccine,” Rebecca McTernan said. “As we left Steele Hall, there were dozens of elderly people waiting in the parking lot on ‘stand by’ hoping to receive a vaccination that someone else forfeited.”
McTernan lamented that about 100 inmates at the county jail had been vaccinated before so many worthy others. “These elderly, retired, good people were outside waiting for a possible vaccine. …. The priorities of officials are becoming very questionable and the health of our elderly shouldn’t be politically motivated.”
A wait list, however, has been established on the site for The Chautauqua Center that is located in both Dunkirk and Jamestown. To be on the list, those signing up must complete a four-minute survey. According to the web site, the questionnaire eliminates the need to contact the office as it will allow participants to directly input information into the vaccine waitlist. A link to the site can be found at https://chqgov.com/public-health/covid-19-vaccination-clinics by scrolling down.
One thing evident in the Chautauqua County demographics regarding the vaccines are the low numbers of non-white residents who are receiving doses. According to New York state, just under 95% of those vaccinated here so far are white residents with only 3% being Hispanic or Latino and 1.2% being African American.
During the week of March 1 to 7, New York state said it received 1,020,660 first doses, which include those from Moderna, Pfizer and the one-shot Johnson & Johnson dose. All told, the state has received 6.5 million of the first and second doses and 21% of residents across New York have received at least one shot.