Montco Wait Line At 172K, As New Phone Registration Launched

NORRISTOWN, PA — After several weeks of receiving reduced shipments of vaccine, leading to repeated closures of mass vaccination clinics, Montgomery County saw an increase in new doses this week, officials said during a news briefing Wednesday.

The increase corresponds to a statewide boost in doses, as the state saw its largest single week shipment ever of first doses of the vaccine this week.

The county received 31,080 first doses this week. They have 6,515 first doses remaining, and are continuing to administer about a thousand doses a day. Another shipment is expected within four to six days.

As they note on a weekly basis, county has the capacity to increase how many people they vaccinate daily, and they will open up more mass vaccination clinics as increased shipments are received. It could be around seven weeks until these more notable increases are received.

In the meantime, the wait line continues to grow. There are now 172,824 Montgomery County residents pre-registered to receive the vaccine.

Once you pre-register (eligible residents in the state's 1A category can register here) it may take up to 12 weeks for the county to contact you about an appointment. As of Wednesday, the county was currently booking appointments that had been made on Jan. 13th, so they're still dealing with a significant six-week backlog.

Hotline launched

Vaccine pre-registration can now be completed over the phone. The county's hotline — (833) 875-3967 — is accepting pre-registration calls from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Callers are put into the system and wait line, and once their booking slot becomes available, they are notified.

“...Technology access may be a significant barrier for older adults to use online vaccine appointment systems," Doreen Hespell, Administrator of the Office of Senior Services, said in announcing the system. "Many of us are already helping older family members, friends, or neighbors in the vaccine process. For people who may not have that support in their life, there are kind, capable volunteers out there who want to help."

The hotline is operated by volunteers.

Centralized registry

Legislation has been introduced in both chambers of the Pennsylvania general assembly to build a centralized registration system, so that residents can sign up to receive their vaccine in one location, rather than attempting to sign up through multiple pharmacies or healthcare systems.

There is significant support for the idea in Montgomery County.

"We have not taken any official stance, however, obviously it would make it much easier for our constituents," Commissioner Val Arkoosh said Wednesday.

Officials noted there are IT concerns and complications, and if such a registry was simple to implement in Pennsylvania, it would have already been done.

"I would absolutely support that," Commissioner Ken Lawrence added. "(It is) one of the things that people find very confusing."

Arkoosh added that even if the registry came into effect down the line, it would still be useful.

"I do think we'll be vaccinating people for some time," she said. "It would be helpful, even if it were a few months from now."

Total numbers vaccinated

The county has now fully vaccinated 33,706 individuals, and partially vaccinated 76,926, for a total of 110,632 who have received at least their first shot.

That represents some 13.31 percent of the county's population, as of Thursday afternoon.