Page 41 - BusinessWest March 3, 2021

While she understands the supply-and- demand issues, Dr. Nahid Bhadelia says the state’s website troubles have still been “a bit of a disappointment.”
to work through most of the currently eligible population that wants a vaccine now. We want people to get vaccinated. We want people to be safe.”
In a hearing with legislators that day, the governor noted that residents have been able to book more than 300,000 appointments through the system despite its flaws, and that Massa- chusetts is first state in the nation in first doses administered per capita among the 24 states with more than 5 million residents.
the end of March,” said Dr. Nahid Bhadelia, infectious- disease physician and medi- cal director of the Special Pathogens Unit at Boston Medical Center, in a Face- book Live conversation with state Sen. Adam Hines, also on Thursday.
Bhadelia understands Baker’s frustration with sup- ply ... to a point. “Demand really outweighs supply, still. But last week’s chal- lenges with the website were kind of drastic,” she said. “That was a bit of a disappointment.”
She and Hinds agreed that a waiting list for a vac- cine is one thing, but a waiting room just to get on the site is understandably frustrating for people.
However, she also noted
some positives, like a movement at the state level toward delivering more doses to pharmacies and local clinics, after perhaps over-emphasizing the mass-vaccination sites (of which Western Mass., to date, hosts only one).
“I’m glad the governor is going back to clin- ics. We have to get them where people can access them,” Bhadelia said, adding that distribution through doctors’ offices and pharmacies is a tougher organizational challenge, but worth the effort to help people go to providers they trust.
She didn’t deny the website problems, how-
ever. “If they try and can’t access it, one day they will give up.”
Confidence Boost
And if there’s one thing healthcare professionals don’t want, it’s for people
to lose their enthusiasm for getting vaccinated. That’s why the state and various health organizations have rolled out public messaging around the benefits of the vaccine, especially targeting people who might be skepti- cal of its benefits.
“We recognize it’s a jour- ney, and folks might not feel comfortable with it today, but maybe you’ll feel com- fortable tomorrow,” said Lindsey Tucker, associate commissioner of the Mas-
sachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH). “We want to be sure that, when you’re eligible for the vaccine, you can access it when you’re ready for it.”
Tucker said those words during a webinar held last month by the Public Health Institute
of Western Massachusetts, which also featured input from Dr. Sarah Haessler, lead epidemiolo- gist and infectious-disease specialist at Baystate Health, who has emerged as a leading local voice
“Even though you’re vaccinated, you still need to wear a mask, stay six feet apart, avoid crowds, and wash your hands frequently.”
State Rep. William Driscoll, the House chairman of the Joint Committee on COVID-19 and Emergency Preparedness and Manage- ment, was having none of it. “I just really want to stress that I think you’re missing how broken the system is right now,” he told Baker, “and the approach is not working for the citizens of the Commonwealth. It needs to be addressed.”
Baker’s hopes for more vaccine entering the state may get a boost from Pfizer and Moderna both annouc- ing plans to double produc-
tion in March from February’s levels, and by the Johnson & Johnson vaccine nearing emergency authorization.
“They have some very good efficacy data, and they said they’ll deliver another 20 million doses. That’s a one-dose vaccine, so that’s 20 million more people, hopefully, immunized by
Vaccine
Continued on page 45
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