Philadelphia residents who want to get the COVID-19 vaccine can now use the city’s official subscription website to show interest in booking appointments to receive their shots.
The website, which is published in English and Spanish, enables city residents to submit contact information and personal backgrounds to help the city health department determine when users are eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine. This will be based on the provision and updated priority guidelines set by Philadelphia’s vaccine team.
Those filling out the interest form will later be contacted by the Philadelphia Department of Public Health or one of the city’s vaccine partners when it’s their turn to schedule appointments.
Health department officials reassured that the website is secure and that the personal information collected from the form is protected with the same level of security as other health information maintained by the department.
“Having a vaccine against COVID is an important step forward, but we understand that many Philadelphians are frustrated because they do not know how to be vaccinated,” said Dr. Thomas Farley, commissioner for health in Philadelphia, said. “Although we can no longer release doses of vaccine, with this report we can at least assure interested Philadelphiaers that they will be contacted when their opportunity to be vaccinated arises.”
The city’s supply of COVID-19 vaccines is still very limited at present. The city’s website does not allow residents to make an appointment, but rather asks that they be contacted when they can plan one.
It can take weeks or months for people signing up for the COVID-19 vaccination to receive calls to make appointments.
The Department of Health is also collaborating with other organizations that have set up ‘pre-registration sites’, including Philly Fighting COVID, the Black Doctor’s COVID-19 Consortium and Acme. The city aims to ensure that information the groups have already collected will be added to the city’s database.
There has been some confusion among residents or existing vaccine partner websites, such as Philly Fighting COVID, would transfer updated information to the city’s official website.
“While our database is being built, it is being done with the aim of being able to easily combine with the others,” a health department spokesman said. “While it is possible that some people who have signed up for these forms may be contacted in the future, we do not believe it will necessarily be a bad thing after they have already received their vaccine.”
The Department of Health said it is developing tools that enable residents to register on any partner site – or all sites – so that they can be contacted when they are eligible.
Philadelphia is in Phase 1B of its vaccination plan, which includes certain groups of essential workers, the elderly over 75 and people with certain high-risk medical conditions, in addition to health workers already covered under Phase 1A.
“It is important to emphasize that at some point in the future, contact will be made with anyone who indicates that they want to get a vaccine and have the opportunity to make an appointment,” the health department said. . “There is no need to call your personal healthcare provider to make an appointment.”
The city was told it would receive a combined total of about 20,000 doses of Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines by the end of February – plus the appropriate second doses – which Farley described as a ‘very limited amount’. . “
It is hoped and expected that COVID-19 vaccine production will increase significantly in the coming weeks and months.