Vaccine Booster Shot Rollout 'Abysmal' in California; Requires Patients to 'Lie'

Booster shot rollout for coronavirus vaccines has been “abysmal” in California thus far, the San Francisco Chronicle reports, because most adults do not meet the federal criteria required by the websites on which vaccine appointments are schedules.

Though Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) wants all adults to receive a booster shot before the holiday season, given concern about declining immunity from shots administered earlier in the year. But as the Chronicle notes, the state system is not yet ready:

[M]ost online vaccination scheduling systems — including the state’s MyTurn appointment site — still show the specific eligibility categories to receive a booster dose that were in place before state and county officials last week began encouraging booster shots for all.

Those categories follow federal guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The standard says shots are available to those who are 65 and older; people who got the Johnson & Johnson vaccine; and any adult 18 and over with underlying health conditions or who works or lives in a high-risk setting.

People who do not tick one of those boxes are unable to book appointments.

…

Until the change that’s promised on Wednesday, people using the MyTurn.ca.gov site or clinic attestation forms who do not qualify under the older criteria will have to lie and say they fall into one of the eligible categories to secure an appointment slot.

…

“Booster uptake has been abysmal,” said Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious disease specialist with UCSF.

Newsom received a booster shot on Oct. 27 to encourage the public to do the same; it was unclear if he fit into a risk group.

Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the recent e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. His recent book, RED NOVEMBER, tells the story of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary from a conservative perspective. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.