Vaccination Trials

    I was eligible on February 9 for a coronavirus vaccination. I was counting the days, and on that morning, I started calling places that gave vaccinations, naively thinking I would make an appointment for the next day.

    Friends and family in other states were already beginning to be vaccinated, many of them younger than I, but I was patient with Oregon's decisions. I supported their prioritization of teachers over the elderly. I am not an essential worker, not do I live in a nursing home or have to be in public places often. I recognized that I had a place in line and that my turn would come.

    On February 9, I thought my turn had come, but as I went down the list—Asante hospital, Jackson County Health Department, Bi-Mart pharmacy, Fred Meyer, Safeway—I got the same message: All appointments are booked. Period.

    My doctor's office suggested I call Asante instead of trying to book online. When I did, I got a recorded message that I had to be eligible before making an appointment, and I was, so I waited on hold until I was cut off. I called again and was cut off again.

    I was told from several people to go through Asante's app called Mychart, but when I tried to get an account on Mychart, I was told I needed a verification number, which, of course, I didn't have. Another dead end.

    Meanwhile, people were making other suggestions: Try this place and that one. None had appointments available. Some people had simply waited at the fairgrounds when mass inoculations were being given, but the county wasn't doing that any more. One had lied about her circumstances, but, really, there were reasons for prioritization and, in the end, anyone who wants a vaccination is going to get one. It's not worth lying about. 

    When I called my doctor's office again, she gave me a different number to call for Asante, where, she said, I could get a verification number for Mychart. In fact, that's what happened, and, in fact, Mychart worked, and I now have an appointment for a vaccination. It's more than a month away, but I am secured with an appointment. 

    It's really mostly the psychological impact that matters for the long wait. Friends and family who have already been vaccinated have all reported the same response: the immense relief, the opening of possibilities, the sense of a return to unfettered life. I can hardly wait. And even though I had a frustrating experience getting an appointment, I am proud of Oregon's response to the coronavirus crisis and its handling of vaccinations. Oregon ranks 11th in the list of states of efficient roll-out. April 23, my vaccination date, is just around the corner. I have an appointment. I will be vaccinated. And the pandemic will come to an end.