CONCORD, N.H. (AP) - New Hampshire will ditch the problematic federal vaccination scheduling system in the next few weeks but in the meantime is adding tens of thousands of second-shot appointment slots per day, state officials said Wednesday.
Vaccinations began Jan. 23 for the 325,000 people in phase 1B of the state’s vaccination plan. That includes anyone age 65 or older, people with at least two qualifying medical conditions, corrections workers, and staff and residents of residential facilities for people with intellectual or developmental disabilities.
Problems have cropped up as some of those people try to schedule their second doses close to the recommended time frame of 21 or 28 days after the first. Some were given appointments two months later, and confusion has grown about how and when to reschedule.
The state tried to upload a large number of appointment times into the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s scheduling system but was unable to add them all at once, Gov. Chris Sununu said Wednesday.
“The federal system couldn’t handle the influx we were giving it, so we’re sort of spoon-feeding it bit by bit,” he told the Executive Council.
The state plans to discontinue use of the federal system before the next phase begins, he said.
“The hope is as we get to 2A, we’re going to be on a fully state system,” he said. “I think everyone agrees this federal system is a real problem. It is clunky, it is messy. We can’t really control it. If there’s a problem we can’t slow it down, we can’t speed it up.”
Sununu said everyone in phase 1B will be able to receive their second dose within a week of the recommended date.
“The state will meet these deadlines, and we continue to urge patience,” he said in an email.
“It really isn’t a matter of the vaccine availability,” said Health Commissioner Lori Shibinette. “It is there. It’s getting the mechanics of the site up. We have the doses.”
In other coronavirus developments:
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COLLEGE COMMENCEMENTS
New Hampshire colleges and universities are planning in-person graduation ceremonies this spring, with restrictions in place because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Dartmouth College will limit its campus ceremony in June to graduating seniors and graduate and professional school graduates, with family and friends viewing online, President Philip Hanlon said in an email.
The college had hoped to also hold a delayed celebration for last year’s graduating class, but that won’t be happening, he said.
“None of these decisions come without heartbreak - for our students and their families, for our alumni, and for those of us in senior leadership who are faced with having to make them,” he said. “But it is our collective resolve to prioritize the health and safety of our community and our belief in the enduring nature of the Dartmouth fellowship that continues to strengthen our bonds, even in the midst of distance and disappointment.”
Most of the undergraduate members of the Class of 2021 are expected to be on campus for the spring term and will be tested twice a week for the virus.
The University of New Hampshire, meanwhile, is planning in-person ceremonies for both the Class of 2020 and the Class of 2021, Foster’s Daily Democrat reported.
The earlier class will be celebrated during two outdoor ceremonies on May 15, with a third ceremony possible on May 14 if enough graduates express interest in returning.
The Class of 2021 will graduate the following weekend, with five ceremonies based on academic colleges. Each graduate will be allowed two guests.
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THE NUMBERS
More than 66,000 people have tested positive for the virus, including 354 cases announced Wednesday that included numbers for two days. Ten additional deaths were announced, bringing the total to 1,076.
The seven-day rolling average of daily new cases in New Hampshire decreased over the past two weeks, going from 794 new cases on Jan. 19 to 459 on Tuesday.
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