Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
Long Lines And Tech Issues, As Orange County Opens Vaccine Access To Those 65 And Older
People wait in line to receive the COVID-19 vaccine at a mass vaccination site in a parking lot for Disneyland Resort on January 13, 2021 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
()
Cars were lined up outside Disneyland Wednesday morning, not to get into the closed theme park, but to get the COVID-19 vaccine on the first day it became available to anyone over the age of 65 in Orange County.
Disneyland is the first of five mass coronavirus vaccination sites that the county plans to open, each with the capacity to vaccinate 7,000 people a day.
Anaheim Mayor Harry Sidhu thanked the Disneyland Resort for making their space available. He noted that as of tomorrow (Thursday), the park will have been closed for 10 months because of the pandemic:
"Normally this parking lot would be hosting families and friends. Heading to Disneyland for a day of fun and magic in Anaheim. But right now, we are living in anything but normal times."
Support for LAist comes from
The Disneyland vaccine site is only open for people who have an appointment. If you show up without one, you'll be turned away, officials say.
Orange County decided to adopt the state's suggestion to expand vaccine distribution to the 65+ age group yesterday. As soon as officials made the announcement, more than 10,000 people scheduled appointments in less than two hours.
All that traffic overloaded the Othena app and website, where you go to make those appointments. If you went to the site today, you got a message saying registration would reopen at 6 p.m.
The chair of the Orange County Board of Supervisors, Andrew Do acknowledged the issues and asked people to be patient:
"We are working on the technical side to increase the bandwidth in order to get people in to at least let them know that we have them in the system. And then when appropriate, we can then send out notices for the people that qualify."
As Orange County handles the mad dash, L.A. County officials say they do not have enough vaccine doses to expand access to those 65+. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer says she plans to finish vaccinating heathcare workers and nursing home residents before they move on to the next group.
ORANGE COUNTY COVID CASES
Support for LAist comes from
READ MORE ABOUT LOCAL VACCINATION PLANS:
California Expands Vaccine Access To Everyone 65 And Older, But LA County Isn't Ready
- A Million People In 10 Days? California Wants To Boost The COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout
- Your No-Panic Guide To The COVID-19 Vaccines: Are They Safe, And When Can I Get Mine?
Our news is free on LAist. To make sure you get our coverage: Sign up for our daily newsletters. To support our non-profit public service journalism: Donate Now.
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
The L.A. City Council approved the venue change Wednesday, which organizers say will save $12 million in infrastructure costs. -
Taxes on the sale of some newer apartment buildings would be lowered under a plan by Sacramento lawmakers to partially rein in city Measure ULA.
-
The union representing the restaurant's workers announced Tuesday that The Pantry will welcome back patrons Thursday after suddenly shutting down six months ago.
-
If approved, the more than 62-acre project would include 50 housing lots and a marina less than a mile from Jackie and Shadow's famous nest overlooking the lake.
-
The U.S. Supreme Court lifted limits on immigration sweeps in Southern California, overturning a lower court ruling that prohibited agents from stopping people based on their appearance.
-
Censorship has long been controversial. But lately, the issue of who does and doesn’t have the right to restrict kids’ access to books has been heating up across the country in the so-called culture wars.
Best of LAist