Any other year, people would be clamoring to get inside Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Alachua County health department Administrator Paul Myers said that reputation was probably part of the problem at last week’s vaccine clinic.
While the department had 3,000 COVID-19 vaccine slots available for a clinic at the stadium last Friday, only 1,300 people signed up for an appointment, Myers told county commissioners Tuesday.
Some 1,700 slots went unfilled, though the vials weren't taken out of storage and no doses had to be discarded.
“It was a bit disappointing that we left 1,700 slots not filled,” he said.
Myers said Wednesday that the health department sent texts and emails to about 17,000 eligible residents who registered for vaccines through the county’s online portal. Health care workers and people 65 and older are among the majority of people who received a notification. Health workers comprised a majority of the people who ultimately showed up for vaccines.