Alberta Health Services’ phone lines are jammed and the government website has crashed on the first day that Albertans born in 1946 or earlier can book COVID-19 vaccinations.
An additional 230,000 seniors age 75 and older are now eligible for the vaccine, along with all those in Phase 1A who are still receiving theirs, Dr. Deena Hinshaw, the province’s chief medical officer of health, said at a news conference on Tuesday.
Alberta Health Services said Wednesday morning that it is experiencing “very high volumes” and that if users are having trouble accessing the website, to try again soon.
Multiple people who called Health Link at 811 reported not being able to get through on the phone lines at all or being partially through the booking process only to be disconnected.
Others reported the same on the Alberta Health Services online booking tool, with the site either being down entirely or crashing as they were mid-way through booking an appointment.
Hinshaw urged people to be patient on Wednesday.
Our healthcare teams are working very hard to make sure that every eligible senior gets immunized as soon as possible. Everyone who is eligible will get their chance. <br><br>Thank you for being patient as we work to immunize Albertans as safely and quickly as possible. <a href=”https://t.co/Og4m5rzKN1″>https://t.co/Og4m5rzKN1</a>
—@CMOH_Alberta
Dr. Noel Gibney, co-chair of the pandemic response committee of the Edmonton Zone medical staff association, said the website crashing was to be expected based on the experience of other jurisdictions.
“In the early hours of the open time, the systems have often crashed and so I would basically ask people to give it some time,” he said. “I’m sure that later today it will be open.”
More to come.
