Dr. Shahâs words from todayâs briefing, 1/26/2021:
"Iâd like to take a second to talk about where we stand with vaccines and vaccinations. Weâve had a lot of folks who have reached out to us, as well as healthcare providers and hospitals across the state, asking us when, where, and how they can be vaccinated. Thatâs encouraging. We are heartened by the fact that so many individuals across the state of Maine canât wait to be vaccinated. Indeed, folks will remember just a few months ago, the national conversation was âIf thereâs a vaccine thatâs made, will folks want to take it?â Iâm encouraged and really happy that there are so many folks in Maine who have decided that vaccines and vaccinations are the right thing for them.
We know that right now, the number of individuals that want to be vaccinated greatly outstrips the supply of vaccine that we have available. And so Iâd once again like to ask for your patience. We are hoping, working with our colleagues at the CDC that more vaccine is on the way, and when that happens, we will be able to turn that vaccine around to healthcare providers in Maine who can then open up more slots and provide more shots into arms.
Well, there are a number of questions we know that have come up that Iâd like to address head on. The first is: âWhy canât I sign up and then be contacted when itâs my turn?â
Now, some facilities across Maine, whether they are clinics or hospitals, may already have the ability to do that type of preregistration now or in the very near future, but as of right now, we are working still to bring on a statewide platform. That platform is being built right now, so that once itâs live, everyone across the state can sign up, can raise their hand and say I would like to note my interest in being vaccinated, so that when a vaccine is available at a site that is close them, they can be contacted. We are not there yet. It is being worked on. You might say, âWell, why arenât you there yet?â
There are a couple of reasons for that. The first is that the previous administration had plans in place to create just that nationwide, unified IT platform that would be available to all states and jurisdictions that would do, among other things, that type of preregistration. But what ultimately came out, a system called VAMS, didnât meet anyoneâs expectations, and as a result the state of Maine and many other states had declined to use it because it did not actually solve the problems we had. As a result of that, all states including Maine are looking for other options. I donât want to create a system that merely takes names, addresses, phone numbers and email addresses. I want to have a system that actually takes those preregistrations and then allows us to do something with them. In some parts of the country they have those preregistrations set up but thereâs not a plan in place to take that information and actually bidirectionally reach back out to people when a time and slot is open. As Iâve talked about before, Iâm not the type of person that just does half a loaf. I want to make sure that when we have a solution, itâs a solution where weâve played the chess game through to the very end, and itâs a solution that actually solves the problem in front of us. We donât have that available yet, but we are working to bring it on. Once again, I do ask for your patience. We want to get it right, rather than just get it fast.
A related question thatâs also come in to us is: âWhy isnât my doctorâs office contacting me so that I can be vaccinated?â
And the answer there is that some doctorsâ offices, some outpatient clinical practices will be offering vaccines, but not all. Weâve decided to try to prioritize vaccine for places that can get as many shots into arms as quickly as possible. When Maine gets vaccine into our borders, our hope is to turn those around and get them into arms as quickly as we can. Some physiciansâ offices will have the capacity either on their own to do that sort of high throughput vaccination, or perhaps as a consortium of physiciansâ offices who get together and offer vaccine to their patients and those in their community on an occasional basis to set up larger scale clinics. Some will be able to do that, but not all. The other important piece to note is that much of this consideration to focus vaccines in places that can get as many shots into arms as quickly as possible- whether itâs an FQHC or a consortium of physicians, or a hospital- is driven by the fact that right now we are still extremely supply constrained. This week alone, Maine is getting about 18,000 doses of vaccine. When you compare that against the fact that there are over 190,000 people alone in Maine who are 70 and over, you see right off the bat that there are many more people who wish to be vaccinated than we have doses available. If that were to change- when that changes- when supply is no longer our principal constraint, we hope to be able to provide vaccine far and wide to providers across the state, whether they are independent medical offices, or whether they are pharmacies in your neighborhoods. For right now, with such a limited supply, weâre focusing on places that can get as many shots into arms. Maybe thatâs a large throughput public facing site, maybe itâs a consortium, maybe itâs a hospital. Those are places where vaccine can come in the door and get put into arms without wasting a single dose.
Another question thatâs come in to us is: âWhy donât all hospitals have a way to register and get in the queue?â
Once again, this is only a matter of time. Iâve had the opportunity, as has Commissioner Lambrew, to speak with hospital leaders at all different types of hospitals across the state- whether they are hospitals associated with big systems or hospitals that are independent- to talk to them about the ways they are going about scheduling and registering patients. Again, itâs only a matter of time before all hospitals in the state are able to register everyone and give them a spot in the line. This again is subject to vaccine availability, but I want everyone to know that this is being worked on and we hope that those systems are ready and available soon.
The last question thatâs come in to us is: âThis is all well and good, but what if I donât use a computer?â
We hear that. We understand that concern particularly in Maine. We want everyone to know that we are setting up phone lines through a call center that can be used by anybody- whether itâs you yourself calling to set up an appointment for you and your spouse, or maybe youâre calling to set up an appointment for your parents or your in-laws. Once again, we want to get this right rather than just get it fast. So I once again ask for your patience as we are setting up all of these systems- doing so correctly, doing so thoughtfully, doing so in a manner that actually solves the problems we have, rather than just putting something up thatâs cosmetic- thatâs the way that we like to do business. Doing business in that manner, especially because the federal solution did not pan out, means that we have to make sure we get it right and thatâs why Iâm asking everyone for your patience. Hopefully by the time these systems are set up and fully operational, we will start seeing more and more vaccine coming into the state of Maine, so we will have the happy union of access coupled with more vaccine. But those days, those times are still a little bit ahead of us, and so in that meantime I once again ask for your patience and your cooperation. Please know that we are working as fast and as diligently as we can to get all of these things set up so that when theyâre ready to go theyâre useful to everybody.
One final note before I turn to our colleagues in the media: in recent days, Maine CDC has received reports of phone calls coming in from an 844 area code number. The folks who are calling from this 844 area code number purport to be either contact tracers or people claiming to be confirming a vaccine appointment. In both instances, these individuals have asked for the personâs social security number that they are calling. I want to remind everyone that Maine CDC contact tracers do not and will not ask for your social security number. If you get a phone call from somebody who claims to be a contact tracer and asks for your social security number, or you just get a bad vibe about them- feel free to hang up and dial the main line at the Maine CDC, or to ask for the number that you can call them back at. If that number is not what you see on the Maine CDCâs website, please be skeptical. If you are being asked for your social security number from someone who is claiming to know things about you, whether they are a contact tracer or whether they are calling to tell you that your vaccine appointment has been confirmed, itâs reasonable to exercise a skeptical eye. Donât ever feel shy about asking that person for their ID number, or asking that person for a phone number, and if that phone number is not what you see associated with the Maine CDC, your doctorâs office, your local hospital, please know to be skeptical and exercise extreme caution. Weâve already reported these reports to the Attorney Generalâs office to their Consumer Protection Bureau, but I wanted to make sure and remind everybody that often and unfortunately as weâve seen during times of COVID, there are individuals who will take advantage of concern, anxiety and fear and use that to potentially perpetrate scams. Always be on the lookout, especially if the individuals are asking you for private information like your social security number."
-Dr. Nirav Shah, Director, Maine CDC