Vaccine rollout in Riverside County hampered by ineligible people signing up for appointments, health officials say

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KABC) – The line of health workers and people eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine wrapped around the block outside a clinic in Riverside on Wednesday morning. Some people said they had to wait over an hour and a half.

“What’s the point of making an appointment if we all have to wait in this line,” said a Temecula resident whose mother tried to book a date online, only to be told that she had been placed on a waiting list and was due to register again later.

“It seems like this is an ongoing narrative going from the federal government to the local government being ill-equipped and under-prepared to handle this pandemic,” added the Temecula resident.

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Part of the problem, according to Riverside County public health officials, is that many of those who actually registered online were not actually eligible based on the current level.

“As the immunization clinics open, we welcome people who are not eligible for these appointments,” said Dr. Geoffrey Leung of Riverside University Health System.

Riverside County is increasing the availability of vaccines as the state of California has now made people 65 and over eligible. This afternoon, county health officials announced clinics at places like Corona High School starting Thursday. These facilities will offer vaccines by appointment only, which must be listed on the county’s vaccine distribution website.

But Dr Leung said partnerships with pharmacies will be needed to make the vaccine more widely available.

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“We believe that the only way to get people vaccinated in such a short period of time is with everyone’s help and partnership,” Leung said.

Meanwhile, pharmacies say they are ready to help distribute the vaccine more widely. Many pharmacies in California will receive their first vaccine shipments on Thursday.

“There is a drugstore within five miles of 90% of Americans,” said Steve Anderson, president of the National Association of Chain Drugstores. “Pharmacies have the capacity to meet the demand for 100 million doses of vaccine in just one month.”