Mayor Tyer Cautions Residents Against Vaccine Line Jumping
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Mayor Linda Tyer on Tuesday voiced concern on an issue with line jumping for COVID-19 vaccinations to the City Council.
"I know you're anxious," Tyer said to the council and the general public during the Zoom meeting. "We all want to get vaccinated but there is a very specific process, especially as it relates to the timing of first and second doses. It's really important that we follow the protocols that are in place so that people who are eligible for a second dose are able to get into those appointments."
More than 200 people showed up at Saturday's second vaccination clinic at Berkshire Community College expecting to receive the first vaccination and were turned away because community members were sharing the private link for scheduling a second dose with friends and family, Tyer said.
When community members sign up for the wrong dosage, that is reportedly taking vaccination appointments from those who are eligible.
"What's happening is, understandably, because people are so eager and so anxious to get vaccinated, members of the community are sharing that link with their friends and their family," Tyer explained. "And so people are using that link to schedule a first dose, even though that isn't the intention of that link. And what that means is, for example, we had close to 200 people who tried to get a first dose on Saturday. That means, though, that there were 200 people who didn't, or couldn't get an appointment for their second dose for which they are eligible to receive."
Most doses being received in the Berkshires over the last couple weeks have been for people to receive their second shot of the two-dose Pfizer or Moderna vaccine.
The BCC site aims to have clinics on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays but this depends on the vaccine allocation that is received from the state. The clinics will continue to run those three days and if the time comes when they receive a larger allocation of the vaccine, they can expand days and hours.
"I would encourage anyone who is in an eligible category to check the website daily because we do get updates, sometimes daily, sometimes twice a day," Tyer urged. "As soon as we know when we have vaccine allocations coming to the Berkshires, we will update that website with information about when the appointment scheduler will be open. So really, I would encourage people to check it daily."
In a COVID-19 update, Tyer reported that the city's average case rate over the last 14 days is 6.34 percent, which is "significantly lower" than previous averages since the spike that occurred in early November.
While approaching the one-year anniversary of the pandemic, the city is seeing a decline in cases and positivity rates that began around Jan. 17.
Tyer was also happy to report that Berkshire County, along with Barnstable County, is exceeding every other regional collaborative in the state for vaccinating residents who wish to be vaccinated.
"I think that is something for us to be really proud of, and I think it speaks to the organization that's happened around getting vaccines available to the people of our communities," she said.
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