Technical difficulties fixed for 70+ COVID-19 vaccination registration in Utah

Jan 13, 2021, 2:08 PM | Updated: Jan 14, 2021, 7:23 am

covid vaccine registration salt lake vaccination system...

Starting Monday, people as young as 16 with qualifying medical conditions can schedule a COVID-19 vaccination in Salt Lake County. (PHOTO: KSL TV)

(PHOTO: KSL TV)

BY JOHN WOJCIK

Former Reporter

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah — The Salt Lake County Health Department experienced technical difficulties with their COVID-19 vaccination registration form Wednesday morning.

Uh-oh: Experiencing technical difficulties

The issues coincided with vaccination registration opening for the first time to all Utahns 70 years old and over.

Officials say the problem was due to tens of thousands of people simultaneously attempting to load the page when registration first opened at 8 a.m. According to the department, their page simply couldn’t that volume. Within an hour, the system was functioning again.

“We are very sorry for this problem,” Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson said in a statement. “The health department estimates there are approximately 70,000 Salt Lake County residents 70 and over. The health department has 30,000 appointments available through February 27. That number of appointments is based on the number of doses we have been told we can expect to receive.”

We recognize our system for scheduling failed and are working to address. We apologize. Please stand by.

— Jenny Wilson (@JennyWilsonUT) January 13, 2021

COVID vaccine registration available for 70+

While Utahns 70 and older can currently register for vaccine appointments, none of those individuals will receive a vaccine earlier than January 18.

“Our appointment availability is driven completely by vaccine availability,” said Nicholas Rupp with the Salt Lake County Health Department. “We have infrastructure, we have staff in place to vaccinate a lot of people, but what we don’t have right now is a large number of doses.”

Because so many people (over 15,000) are registered, the confirmation emails/texts are metered to spread them out in order to not overwhelm the system, so you may receive yours closer to the end of the day. Thank you for your patience!

— Salt Lake County (@SLCoGov) January 13, 2021

Going forward, the Salt Lake County Health Department is encouraging the public to set up a vaccination appointment online; those without internet access may use phone registration for the COVID-19 vaccine.

People who received the erroneous notice will receive a correction, if they have not already.

We apologize profusely. The challenging morning today was caused by a technology problem with our scheduling vendor, but this evening's mistake was human error.

— Salt Lake Health (@SaltLakeHealth) January 14, 2021

How To Prevent the Spread of COVID-19 Coronavirus

COVID-19 coronavirus spreads person to person, similar to the common cold and the flu. So, to prevent it from spreading:

Wash hands frequently and thoroughly, with soap and water, for at least 20 seconds.
Don’t touch your face.
Wear a mask to protect yourself and others per CDC recommendations.
Keep children and those with compromised immune systems away from someone who is coughing or sneezing (in this instance, at least six feet).
If there is an outbreak near you, practice social distancing (stay at home, instead of going to the movies, sports events, or other activities).
Obtain a flu shot.