There are an estimated 363,000 Chicagoans 65 and older who are eligible right now, alongside another 350,000 frontline essential workers, such as teachers and grocery store clerks. “There’s a lot of things that we’re doing for the first time as a society, but scheduling and access to care is not one of them and there’s just no time for trial and error to figure this out.” “It is crucial to make this process easier so that even if you don’t have unlimited time and resources, you can get one of these shots,” Kharraz said.
Kharraz said the current system is “too frustrating” and “too inefficient” because it requires people to navigate dozens of websites or spend hours on the phone. Right now, many hospitals are reaching out to patients aged 65 and older to schedule appointments, as elderly people are least likely to be able to navigate an online scheduling tool. Allison Arwady, said Chicagoans should first try to make vaccine appointments with their primary care providers, if they have one. Paul Casey, chief medical officer at Rush, said in a statement.Ĭhicago’s Commissioner of Public Health, Dr. “Demand for the vaccine is understandably high, and it is essential that we have tools that make it easy for eligible patients to get it safely and efficiently,” Dr. This week, the Moderna shipment increased, bringing the total weekly new doses to nearly 40,000.īut health officials continue urging people to have patience as supply remains low. The city says several local medical systems and hospitals, such as Erie Family Health and Rush University Medical Center, are already signed up – and others can connect for free.Įach week, the city is getting about 35,000 doses from Pfizer and Moderna, the two companies with emergency use authorization to distribute vaccines. The site is free to use and has translation support in more than 100 languages. “And then you can see all without having to go through 10 different websites.”Ĭhicagoans can sign up on the Zocdoc Vaccine Scheduler to be notified as appointments become available. Oliver Kharraz, founder and CEO of Zocdoc. “There’s probably not vaccines for everyone on day one, but at least now there’s a central point where you can put in your email to get notified when more vaccines become available,” said Dr.
Tuesday’s announcement comes as more than 700,000 Chicagoans eligible to get inoculated are struggling to get access to the limited number of doses. But the vaccine supply continues to lag far behind demand.
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