All 1,800 appointments for Anchorage mass COVID-19 vaccination clinics booked within hours

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ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - Hundreds of Alaskans will receive their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine during mass vaccination clinics planned for Saturday, Sunday and Tuesday in Anchorage, but all of the appointments filled up in a matter of hours Thursday, leading to frustration for people still trying to sign up.

All 1,800 available time slots were reserved within a four hour time period Thursday, according to Heather Harris, director of the Anchorage Health Department, who acknowledged that many Alaskans have felt frustration and confusion while trying to access the system. The clinics do not have waitlists, and walk-ins will not be accepted.

Anchorage’s vaccine allotment for the month of January is 14,600 doses, according to Harris, and the population of Anchorage residents 65 and older who are now eligible to receive the vaccine is close to 33,000. There simply isn’t enough to go around.

“Given the allotment numbers that are projected, right now, you know, that we received in January and potentially going to receive in February, we estimate that we will remain in this space of low availability of vaccine with high demands unfortunately for some time,” said Harris.

Harris said primary care providers who are assisting with distributing the vaccine might have doses still available for distribution.

AHD Chief Medical Officer Dr. Bruce Chandler thanked Anchorage residents for efforts to slow the spread of the virus over the holidays.

“I really think you made a huge difference in December and lowering transmission,” he said, “but we’re not out of the woods yet, and I think there’s still reasons to worry.”

Chandler said the Anchorage community has a long way to go to achieve herd immunity, and that another 250,000 residents need to get vaccinated. He urged Alaskans to remain vigilant, citing a new report about COVID-19 transmission.

“My final concern is a report yesterday in the Journal of the American Medical Association, from Dr. Jay Butler and colleagues at CDC, when they found that more than half of all transmission of COVID-19 occurs from people who have no symptoms,” he said.

AHD Dr. Janet Johnston said with some Anchorage students returning to the classroom on Jan. 19, it is important that the community continues to take efforts to slow the spread.

“What we’ve found nationally is that the infection rate in schools tends to mimic what’s in the community,” she said. “So my main concern is actually across the community that people continue to be vigilant with the preventative measures that we’ve been talking about for months now.”

Information about vaccine distribution in Alaska can be found on the state’s website.