MA Overhauling Vaccine Registration, Sets Dates For Teachers

Massachusetts is making more changes to its much-criticized vaccination rollout, unclogging the appointment process and setting aside four days for only educators to be inoculated.

Gov. Charlie Baker announced Wednesday the state will launch a pre-registration website for its mass vaccination sites, putting an end to the Thursday-morning rush for appointments that has resulted in a crashed site, ludicrous wait times and mounting frustration. The pre-registration site will go live Friday, meaning this Thursday will be the last time people need to jockey for bookings on vaxfinder.mass.gov.

Eligible residents must fill out an online form, including contact information, and get a notification from the state when they can book at the nearest mass vaccination site. Those without a computer can call 211 to get vaccination notifications by phone.

Appointment notifications will be given on a first-come, first-served basis, so there is still an incentive to be among the first on the website.

Residents can still get vaccination appointments at local pharmacies and clinics.

Baker also announced the state will set aside four days at mass vaccination sites for teachers and school staff on March 27, April 3, April 10 and April 11. The hope is to administer first doses to 20,000-25,000 during those four weekend days, he said.

Thursday will be the first day teachers can get vaccinated anywhere that isn't a pharmacy chain. Baker's announcement last week that they would become eligible ahead of schedule came only after President Joe Biden pressured states to get teachers vaccinated.

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education has said teachers do not need to be vaccinated to get safely back in class. The department expects elementary students back in class full-time by April 5, even though almost no one becoming eligible Thursday would be fully vaccinated by that date.