Hillsborough Commissioner Calls Vaccine Registration 'Clown Show'

HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, FL — Hillsborough County has fired the vendor in charge of setting up the coronavirus vaccine registration process that rolled out Monday, calling it a fiasco.

The coronavirus vaccination registration system for those age 65 and older had to be shut down shortly after opening Monday due to the overwhelming demand.

Hillsborough County Director of Emergency Operations Tim Dudley said people seeking appointments by phone were cut off or placed on hold for hours, many never getting through. Similarly, people using the internet portal were cut off in the midst of the registration process or given conflicting directions.

At their regular meeting Wednesday, Hillsborough County commissioners said they received hundreds of phone calls and emails from residents complaining about the system.

"I want to preface my remarks by saying they're not directed at any particular person because, quite frankly, I don't know who to blame," Commissioner Ken Hagan said. "I'd characterize it as a clown show but it's not amusing when you consider the life-and-death consequences at stake. Frankly, if this occurred in the private sector, someone's ass would be fired. What we have witnessed in the past few days is disgraceful."

He added that the problems were compounded "with confusing and mixed messages."

"I'm beyond frustrated, and citizens are frustrated," Hagan said. "This process better be incredibly improved by our next distribution."

Commissioner Kimberly Overman agreed.

"People are frustrated because they're scared, especially if have health conditions," she said. "But I also know people without health conditions are dying."

"I, too, have received countless emails," Commissioner Stacy White said. "I just want to echo Commissioner Hagan's sentiments. If you 're a vendor who want to do business in Hillsborough County, you have to deliver on your promises. I fully support holding this vendor accountable.

Deputy County Administrator Greg Horwedel told commissioners he wouldn't "sugar coat" what occurred Monday.

"It was the worst performance by a vendor responding to our terms that I've ever seen. We have to do a better job. It wasn't up to the level of trust in service that we're accustomed to providing," he said. "We're working with a new vendor to make sure the next process is much smoother."

He said the county was able to make 7,000 appointments on Monday before the system failed. On Tuesday, he designated an additional 25 Hillsborough County employees to complete the registration process so that all 9,000 vaccines allocated to the county could be distributed to those age 65 and older. The vaccination process began Wednesday and will continue through Saturday, he said.

Among the improvements being put into place is expanding the "on-hold" capabilities of the system.

"Being put on hold is something no one likes to do but there is an advantage in talking to a person," Horwedel said.

The county also plans to set up mobile vaccination sites in retirement communities (there are 36 retirement communities in the county) and the state plans to begin offering the vaccine at state testing sites. Currently, the state has designated Raymond James Stadium for vaccine distribution.

There are an estimated 206,000 residents in Hillsborough County who are 65 years old or older who are eligible to receive vaccinations from the county.

Dr. Douglas Holt, director of the Florida Department of Health-Hillsborough, said he anticipates receiving 9,000 doses of the vaccine from the state each week but hopes to increase that amount to 15,000 doses by the end of January and double the number in February.

He added, however, that he can't make any guarantees because the county has no control over the number of doses the state sends out to each county.

At the very least, he wants to receive 9,000 more doses so those who received a first dose of the vaccination can get the necessary second dose.

He said the county received an initial 23,500 doses of the vaccine on Dec. 28 and distributed the majority to first responders, long-term care facility staff and residents, and front-line health care workers as mandated by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

"We identified the problems and went into troubleshooting mode," Dudley said. "We are in constant communication with the state."

By the end of the week, Dudley said the county will have four sites open for vaccinations in addition to the state's regional site at the stadium and sites offered by CVS and Walgreens.

In addition, the county will offer a mobile option for residents who are homebound or live too far away from the vaccination sites and set up sites at retirement communities.

"We'll work with the DOH and determine the best locations for citizens with the most need," he said.

Commissioner Harry Cohen said the registration debacle is only part of the problem.

"I don't want to beat a dead horse about what a fiasco this process has been," he said. "But one of the things I promised people is that we would get information at today's meeting about the process going forward. There's a lot of misinformation out there. Can we reassure people that over the coming weeks they will be able to get vaccines from other providers?"

In addition to BayCare Health and Tampa General hospitals, which have large outpatient centers with patients on Medicare age 65 and over that are receiving regular vaccine allotments from the state, Holt said the federal government is providing Suncoast Community Health Centers and Tampa Family Health Centers with vaccines.

"I can't distribute the vaccine to hundreds of providers, but I can get it to central hubs," Holt said.

Eventually, he said, local community doctors and clinics will have access to the vaccine through a state program called Florida SHOTS.

"We're going to do all we can to make sure the vaccine is available as close to their homes as possible," he said.

Overman also suggested the county talk to pharmacies which are already authorized to provide flu vaccinations.

Cohen, however, said he would like a list of alternative places where people can get vaccinated, so he can relay the information to residents when they call his office.

"We've got to simplify this for people," he said. "We've got to let people know these are the places you can get vaccines. If people don't know that, it's just going to add to the frustration. It would be helpful if we can get all of this information and say, 'Here are providers you can reach out to who are federally qualified.' And we need to know what we realistically expect to receive from the state and other sources."

Overman said there are untapped health-care providers who are willing and eager to provide the vaccine to residents but the county not knowing how many doses of the vaccine it will receive from the state on any given day presents a major problem.

"My office has been contacted by numerous front-line health providers who are working with our senior communities and don't know where they can get vaccines," she said.

Additionally, she said there are front-line health care workers at doctors' offices, labs and home health care companies as well as first responders who are being exposed to the coronavirus and have not yet been vaccinated.

"We've got teachers who are hanging around kids who have been out playing over the holidays, and those people are at risk," Overman said.

She made a motion to have staff draw up a written plan by the Jan. 21 commission meeting for getting residents vaccinated including goals, opportunities to partner with others to distribute the vaccine when more supplies are available, and strategies to keep residents updated.

"We've got 1.4 million people in the county," she said. "It's going to be awhile for a lot of them to get the vaccine, and we're starting to see community threat levels that are unmanageable."

Holt admitted that he has no idea how many doses of the vaccine are being distributed to hospitals and federally approved health care clinics in Hillsborough County. He said he is setting up a meeting with those providers to obtain those details.

The board voted unanimously to approve Overman's motion.

In the meantime, Holt said the county's hospitals are perilously close to maxing out the number of coronavirus patients they can handle.

He said the seven-day average positivity rate for the county has doubled to 800 cases per day in the past week and the county's positivity rate is now at 15.7 percent "and increasing across all ages."

"The bottom line is all of our hospitals are strained," Holt said. "We are blessed to have so many hospitals in the county, but the admissions are at 55 a day, near the peak of 60 patients a day we saw in July. And patients are sicker and staying longer."

He said some hospital intensive care units are at 80 and 90 percent capacity.

"They certainly are concerned with what's ahead," he said. "We will see more and more cases of COVID patients being admitted. Right now they're operating normally, and they do believe they can handle the caseload, but they're going to face significant challenge with COVID going up."

He said the biggest problem facing hospitals is a lack of staff to handle the rising coronavirus cases.

"We need more staffing everywhere. Our hospitals have shown they can work very collaboratively to weather the storm but there will be impacts," he said.

With a surge in positive cases, Overman said "it's critically important that businesses continue to follow through on the mandates. People are losing their lives. We will not win this war thinking things are normal. We're not there yet."

With that in mind, the commission voted to extend the mask mandate requiring that face coverings be worn inside businesses.

Related stories:

• U.S. Congressman Blames Governor For Failed Vaccine Rollout
• Hillsborough Vaccine Appointments Closed; Waiting For Shipment
• Use It Or Lose It, Governor Told Hospitals That Received Vaccines
• Nurse Dies 4 Weeks After Exposure To Coronavirus Working At Jail