Slow Vaccine Rollout 'Affecting Us:' Princeton Health Department

PRINCETON, NJ — The Princeton Health Department (PHD) on Tuesday said that the vaccine distribution process has slowed down due to the nationwide shortage of vaccines.

“The slow vaccine rollout is a national issue impacting our statewide distribution efforts and affecting all of us,” the department said in a statement.

“Clinics throughout the state of New Jersey and other states, are all impacted by the current temporary vaccine shortage.”

Officials said they have been receiving a high volume of calls and emails inquiring about the availability of the COVID-19 vaccine. Prior to the shortage, a series of vaccination clinics was conducted by the Mercer County Public Health Officers’ Association. Over the past weeks, a number of eligible people were vaccinated.

According to the PHD, Gov. Phil Murphy’s expansion of eligible vaccine recipients on Jan. 14 led to “local and state vaccination resources becoming overwhelmed in our efforts to schedule appointments."

"With the expansion of eligibility into more categories, there are now many more people who are eligible to get vaccinated, but our vaccine supply is still very limited and will be for some time," Department of Health Commissioner Judy Persichilli said Tuesday.

Another component of the rollout that has been slower than anticipated is the distribution of vaccines to the residents and staff of our long-term care centers, PHD officials said. These vaccinations are being handled by CVS and Walgreens.

On Tuesday, Gov. Murphy's addressed the issue, saying, They need to punch at a higher rate, especially Walgreens."

"When they're not performing - this is the federal piece in our state - that is impacting our overall, the sense of our overall posture and we're not getting to people fast enough," he said. "That comes back largely to the lack of federal doses that we need of this vaccine, but they need to do better, especially Walgreens."

Despite the shortage, Mercer County is expected to have a soft opening of the newest vaccination clinic at Mercer County Community College on Jan. 28. Mercer County was recently informed by the state Department of Health that they will be receiving 800 vaccines every week, beginning next week.

Currently, the state is receiving 100,000 doses per week. Officials said that the state had been expecting a supply of 400,000 doses per week to meet demands.

PHD officials said they will keep the public informed about vaccine availability on a regular basis. Local clinics will again be scheduled when the town receives the doses to administer, said officials.

For more information on the vaccine, click here.

Around 9,147 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered so far in Mercer County, according to the state's vaccine hub.

As of mid-morning Tuesday, New Jersey completed 388,160 vaccinations in the state, Murphy said.

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