Baker Displeased With Vaccine Rollout As State Ramps Up Effort

BOSTON — More than 120,000 appointments for COVID-19 vaccinations will open for next week as the state works to shore up an admittedly disappointing rollout to this point.

"I'm not happy with where we are. I know a lot of other people aren't either," Gov. Charlie Baker said Wednesday after touring Fenway Park, one of the state's mass vaccination sites. "We have work to do and we know that."

That work has already started with a rush of new appointments being made available next week — including 55,000 at mass vaccination sites — and improvements made to the cumbersome sign-up process that left senior citizens exasperated.

Massachusetts had administered 654,104 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine as of Monday night, Baker said. Over 1 million doses had been shipped.

But for many, the process has been anything but smooth. Phase Two of the state's rollout plan started this week and includes people over the age of 75, but many still can't figure out where and how to get vaccinated.

"It may take several weeks in some cases to schedule an appointment," Baker said. "Please be patient."

The state's COVID-19 vaccination website has added features including a search-by-ZIP code to help, while more and more locations, including pharamacies and community health centers, will start offering the vaccine.

CVS will begin vaccinating eligible residents next week at 18 of the pharmacy's locations across Massachusetts, part of the federal government's efforts to broaden vaccine accessibility. CVS is starting with 21,600 doses of the vaccine, and more locations and appointments will be available as supply increases.

The mass vaccination sites are expected to help ease much of the burden. Baker said 1,200 doses of the vaccine have been administered at Fenway since it opened Monday, which was a snow-shortened day. He's hoping for about 500 doses a day this week, 1,000 a day next week and 1,250 a day the following week, eventually administering 8,000 doses a week "in the not-too-distant future."

Another mass vaccination site opened Wednesday at the Double Tree Hilton Hotel in Danvers. The Reggie Lewis Center in Roxbury will transition into a mass vaccination site by the end of February.

Mike Carraggi can be reached at mike.carraggi@patch.com. Follow him on Twitter @PatchCarraggi. Subscribe to Boston Patch for free local news and alerts and like us on Facebook.