Thousands overwhelm Johnson County COVID vaccine survey. Officials: ‘We apologize’
Thousands of Johnson County residents trying to complete a COVID-19 vaccine survey bogged down the online system, forcing the health department to boost its server capacity and encourage people to keep trying.
The Johnson County Department of Health and Environment launched the online survey for people who qualify for the next phase of the state’s vaccination distribution plan. That includes residents 65 and older and “high-contact critical workers.”
“We apologize to those who have experienced difficulty completing the survey,” the department posted on its Facebook page over the weekend. “The issues with the survey have been addressed and we will continue to monitor the situation.
“We have increased the server capacity, so please try again over the next few days. We appreciate your patience.”
As of Saturday afternoon, more than 48,000 people had filled out the county’s vaccine interest survey. Some tried unsuccessfully.
As of Tuesday, the department had received 50,000 to 55,000 completed surveys — about 80,000 in all counting duplicates and some not completely filled out, said department spokeswoman Barbara Mitchell.
The survey is designed to find out who wants the vaccine. Filling it out does not place you in a line, score you an appointment or reserve you a dose when the vaccines arrive. There’s no rush to complete it, either, said county health officials who are still vaccinating health care workers as part of Phase 1.
Residents and staff of long-term care facilities are also getting vaccinated this month as part of a federal program.
State health officials have said that Phase 2 vaccinations aren’t expected to begin until next month.
“They should “have a good idea by the end of the week when we can move the whole state into Phase 2,” Dr. Lee Norman, Kansas Department of Health and Environment secretary, said Tuesday during a University of Kansas Health System COVID-19 briefing. “Quite a few of the counties are pretty much there already.”
Johnson County officials only want people who qualify for Phase 2 to fill out the survey right now. In addition to seniors, the group includes workers such as first-responders, teachers from kindergarten through high school, and grocery store and food service employees.
The link to the survey is at jocogov.org/covid-19-vaccine. Residents who need assistance or a Spanish translator can call 913-715-2819.
A few things to keep in mind, from the health department:
▪ When you have successfully completed the survey, an on-screen message will appear saying “Thank you for completing the Johnson County, Kansas Phase 2 Vaccination Interest Form. Your response has been saved.” That means the department has received your information.
▪ If you don’t get that confirmation after hitting the “submit” button, the system did not record your information and you will need to fill out the survey again.
▪ Do not call the health department to confirm that you are on the list; just fill out the survey again.
▪ You will not receive a confirmation email.
When the vaccine for Phase 2 arrives, the health department will use the information you’ve given to notify you with instructions on how to schedule an appointment to get vaccinated.
This story was originally published January 20, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
.jpg)