What's going on in Tennessee?

I just asked that question of Tim Burchett ...

Thanks for the info.

Is there anywhere we can see what is going on with vaccines in our area? Such as your mention of second doses and receipt of shipments and status of who will get what when...

KCHD is working with the Knox County IT department to develop an appointment-setting program that will include a waiting list. It should be ready any day now, according to KCHD.

It's not as easy as assigning a number to a name. Each person has to get two appointments, each of them a certain number of days apart (a span of time that can be different, depending on which vaccine is available). And because vaccine distribution is phased, each person will have to supply their age, occupation, relevant medical conditions and more, which the system would then use to determine a person's eligibility for a particular cohort.

Most cohorts are not even eligible at the moment. For example, I could be the first person to log onto the new system but I won't be eligible to get a vaccine until late spring or summer. I might be able to get on the list but I might not because I'm not eligible and no one knows when my cohort will get its turn. There has to be a way for the system to keep me from getting the first slot.

KCHD also needs functions behind the scenes to help planning and coordination. And it all needs to be protected because of HIPAA and other privacy concerns.

It's a pretty complicated undertaking, at least in my estimation, especially since three months ago no one knew when vaccines would be available at all.

An example of how it should be done:

(link...)

Are people sitting around refreshing the KCHD web page all day?

Yes, that's essentially the system. Or traveling elsewhere.

UT Medical Center (UTMC) is already out of appointments for the week.

That one broke the pattern for events involving KCHD. Typically, in the few short weeks that vaccines have been available, KCHD gets word on Wednesday or so about deliveries and announces when you can register on Thursday in news releases, at their press briefing and online.

This one, perhaps because it is cosponsored by UT, was announced by UT in a news release sent out early last night. There was no advance notice and they apparently began setting appointments immediately. They used UT's reservation system, which might have factored into it.

Providers other than KCHD can announce their events any way they wish. Hospitals can work through their physicians' networks or just announce something on their websites or contact the media. As I mentioned earlier, I've asked about a centralized clearinghouse for the info and so far there isn't one.

As far as KCHD events, checking their website once a day probably isn't a bad idea, though they tend to get notification from the state in the middle of the week and announce upcoming events on Thursdays. They do press briefings every Tuesday and Thursday at 12:30 p.m., which you can watch on their Facebook page. They keep the recording posted so you can watch later. And, of course, checking in with the media is never a bad idea.

Supply cannot possibly keep up with demand, so it's going to take months to work through even the most vulnerable populations.

We saw it on FB last night about 9:30pm or so. Because my wife is of age, we signed her up. Now she has an appointment on Thursday @ 9:45AM at UT Student Union. We called several of our friends of age to let them know and they too got signed up. 1,400 doses total. The sight let you know how many were available each time period.

I tried it precisely at 8:30 am and supposedly got a place on the waiting list, although they didn't tell me which (numerical) place. No email or phone confirmation.