Ineffective. Frustrating. Depressing.
These are some of the more polite words residents have used in recent days to describe the registration experience for their second dose of COVID-19 vaccinations in New Hampshire.
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Much of the outrage is directed at VAMS, the free online platform launched by the CDC that promised state and public health officials a streamlined system for scheduling vaccine appointments and monitoring vaccine supply.
But while about 40 states eventually opted not to use VAMS and instead built or contracted their own scheduling systems, New Hampshire opted in and stayed with VAMS, despite apparent system defects.
The state declined to answer a list of specific questions about why it chose to use VAMS. But recent statements by a top public health official indicate that New Hampshire may not have had other options because of a unique loophole in the state’s existing public health system: New Hampshire remains the only state in the country without a complete vaccine registry functional.
“To make this appointment in the absence of a completely high immunization record, we used the CDC’s VAMS system,” Dr. Beth Daly, head of the DHHS Office of Infectious Disease Control, told them last week.
Vaccine registries allow states to better track immunizations, according to public health officials, which can lead to higher vaccination rates. In 2014, New Hampshire spent $ 1.3 million to create a vaccine registry, only to see the project disappear in its late stages due to software issues.
In December 2019, the same month a new coronavirus was first detected in Wuhan, China, the New Hampshire Executive Council approved a $ 1.5 million grant to rebuild a statewide vaccine registry . However, the system is not yet fully operational, making New Hampshire the lone state without a vaccine registry.
“We are working to stand up now,” Daly told NH House Health and Human Services on Friday.
In 2020, facing the largest mass vaccination effort in recent history, the CDC rushed to build a nationwide system for scheduling and tracking COVID-19 vaccinations. The federal government awarded Deloitte a $ 44 million contract without a bid to design and launch the program.
But early VAMS reviews appeared negative enough to persuade most states to select different systems to launch vaccine programming. It also includes Maine, where Dr. Nirav Shah of the state’s public health office told WMTW that VAMS “did not meet anyone’s expectations.” Instead, Maine opts to build its own platform.
In South Carolina, “VAMS has become a word,” according to Marshall Taylor, who heads the state health department, citing a number of frustrations with its launch.
The CDC says a total of only ten “jurisdictions” and one hospital system currently use VAMS.
One of these jurisdictions is New Hampshire, where residents currently eligible for vaccinations interact with VAMS after their first pre-registration through a state-run website. (Residents can also call the state’s 2-1-1 hotline to schedule meetings.)
After this step, the residents receive an e-mail from VAMS, inviting them to make an appointment. However, some residents complained that they never received the invitation email from VAMS or that they were confused by the language on the website after creating an account.
There have also been complaints about user-friendliness for people who connect via smartphones and tablets and that VAMS does not work if Internet Explorer is used as a web browser.
In recent days, anger at VAMS has only increased after a mis-launch of new second-dose appointments for residents who are currently facing long waiting periods between the first and second rounds of vaccination.
On Tuesday, New Hampshire officials blamed VAMS for the problem, apologized for the confusion and vowed to make new appointments to the system within 48 hours. A spokesman for Governor Chris Sununu called VAMS “clumsy” and said the state was working on an alternative system for the next phase of its vaccination launch.
The CDC did not respond to a request for comment on the issue. Meanwhile, many New Hampshire residents say their struggle in VAMS navigation is already adding to an already tense situation.
“The general attitude is that it’s a mess or like the Hunger Games,” said Diane Freedman of Durham, who tried to use VAMS on Tuesday to reschedule the second dose of appointment, only to find that no previous data was available.
A common criticism of VAMS is that it does not allow users to search for appointments without first canceling the already scheduled date. Without this search feature, some residents say they are unwilling to give up the time already reserved, even if these meetings are outside the CDC’s recommended 42-day interval between vaccine rounds.
“I’m totally frustrated,” said Dorothy Powell of western Lebanon, who tried to use the VAMS website on Tuesday to reschedule her second dose. “I was so happy that I received the announcement to come in and reschedule my April time, but now I don’t even have that time, because they told me to cancel it.”
While individual users may choose to express their frustrations with local media or social media, states have been able to raise concerns about VAMS during regular scheduled meetings with the CDC.
“We continue to be in frequent contact with the CDC regarding issues with people trying to schedule meetings at the appropriate time and location in VAMS,” said Jake Leon, a spokesman for the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services. in a statement. “The CDC has responded to these issues.”
Leon added that the state “successfully used VAMS to command and manage vaccines during phase 1A of the COVID-19 vaccine launch. However, this is the first time that any NH system has been used for mass pandemic vaccinations. ”
In an interview with NHPR this week, Daly said the state is working to launch a new vaccination management system that will require only one step to record and schedule a meeting “that we expect to have ready in the next few years.” weeks ”.
However, it is not clear whether the state will be completely free of VAMS or whether it will rely on a behind-the-scenes coordination of ongoing vaccination efforts of residents.