COVID-19: London Drugs all booked up for vaccine appointments

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Starting today people aged 55 to 65 living in the Lower Mainland can book an AstraZeneca/COVISHIELD vaccine, but so far the rollout has not gone smoothly.

Frustrated folks in the region faced busy phone signals at pharmacies, jammed websites, waitlists, and at least one pharmacy chain saying it was all booked up.

On Tuesday night, a day before the bookings opened for this category, London Drugs announced on Twitter that due to an “overwhelming response,” all vaccine appointments had been booked at the three London Drugs pharmacies selected by the B.C. government to offer the vaccine.

The company asked people not to call the pharmacies so they can prepare for the “fully booked” appointments.

Those who felt confused or daunted by the process took to social media to complain about the booking system. Some were upset about London Drugs booking on Tuesday ahead of the Wednesday start, while others despaired over not being able to get a booking because the pharmacy had already run out of AstraZeneca.

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There are dozens of pharmacies around the region offering the jab. The B.C. Pharmacy Association website has a list of pharmacies offering the vaccine, which will be updated regularly in the coming weeks.

However, callers to several pharmacies on the list were met with a busy signal Wednesday morning, indicating a demand for the vaccine.

The 2019 population data for those aged 55 to 65 in the Lower Mainland show there are 275,457 people in that age category in the Fraser Health Authority and 176,431 in Vancouver Coastal.

Those trying for an appointment on the North Shore faced difficulties. For instance, Davies Prescription Pharmacy, which is one of two North Shore pharmacies on the vaccination list, said they were out of a very limited supply of AstraZeneca vaccine on Wednesday morning, while the other one on the list is a London Drugs, which is booked. There is no pharmacy listed for West Vancouver.

The Costco Pharmacy in Abbotsford said they haven’t received any AstraZeneca yet and directed people to add their name to a waitlist at costco.ca.  Rexall pharmacies also has a waitlist.

The Ministry of Health has been contacted to address the situation.

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Interim leader of the Official Opposition Shirley Bond and MLA Renee Merrifield, the BC Liberal critic for health, released a joint statement Wednesday, saying the NDP’s “constant bungling” is creating confusion and concern over vaccinations.

The government announced Tuesday that those in the age 55 to 65 category could start booking vaccines, but many pharmacies were overwhelmed or didn’t know they were on the vaccination list, they said.

“For weeks we have consistently been asking John Horgan to include community pharmacies as part of the rollout and to have a clearly laid out plan. That didn’t happen and British Columbians deserve better. Yesterday was just another example of incompetence from a government that cannot manage to deliver on critical programs like the vaccination rollout, they said.

“Now the 55 to 65 age cohort in the Lower Mainland is left wondering what happened after feeling a sense of hope about the possibility of being vaccinated. We can certainly understand how people are feeling frustration and anger about the latest problems with the vaccination rollout.”

Bond and Merrifield said there needs to be a provincial booking system.

London Drugs’ announcement caused many social media users to express frustration about how people could book on Tuesday when they were told by government that bookings opened on Wednesday.

The company has been contacted for a response but has not yet returned messages.

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The province decided to bump up its age-based immunization plan for AstraZeneca shots after concerns about rare blood clots prompted the National Advisory Committee on Immunization to pause the use of the vaccine for anyone under 55.

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says in a news release that the vaccine remains highly effective and its benefits for those over 55 far outweigh the risks of COVID-19 infection.

More than 99,000 B.C. residents have been diagnosed with COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic and infections have surged across the province in recent weeks, with 840 new cases reported Tuesday.

“As soon as the news was public all of our Lower Mainland British Columbia stores became inundated with customers wanting to book appointments,” London Drugs said on Twitter.

London Drugs said its three designated vaccination sites in Metro Vancouver have received limited allocations of the AstraZeneca vaccine.

“As soon as more supply becomes available, we will open up our online booking similarly to what we would do with routine flu vaccinations. We are ready to vaccinate as many people as possible and expect more information on increased allotment will be coming in the days ahead.”

Those going to get a vaccine will be required to bring their Personal Health Number, located on your CareCard or driver’s license.

The AstraZeneca/COVISHIELD vaccine is currently not available in pharmacies in the Northern, Interior, and Vancouver Island health authorities at this time.

-with files from The Canadian Press and Nathan Griffiths

ticrawford@postmedia.com

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