On Friday, officials with the Arizona Department of Health Services said they have requested an additional 300,000 doses of vaccines.
New data shows that 380,764 doses of the vaccine have been given, according to the health department.
AZDHS Director Dr. Cara Christ gave a press briefing on Friday to explain some new changes that they have received complaints about.
First, there will be updates to the state’s website where people book their appointments. They are making changes to help users find available dates by highlighting what slots are open.
The state will also change how they are scheduling doses at State Farm Stadium.
On Friday, Dr. Christ said that those who go to the state-run site for their first dose will book a second appointment before leaving the stadium.
Dr. Christ said she has been advocating for an additional 300,000 vaccines to the federal government saying, “We work very closely with some of the career professionals at HHS and FEMA."
On Thursday, Maricopa County announced they’re struggling to book second appointments because of supply issues.
Maricopa County Public Health sent out a cryptic tweet Thursday afternoon, suggesting those who’d received their first doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at one of its five POD sites, may not be able to get their second dose on time or even at the same location.
1/2 As able, we are making notifications for 2nd dose appt availability based on date of 1st dose for those vax'd at our regional PODs. It's a slow process, but as vaccine supply increases & we're able to add more appts./locations, more will be notified. https://t.co/1mvPiq8O5B
— Public Health (@Maricopahealth) January 21, 2021
The tweet went on to say they would notify individuals when supply became available but even suggested those looking for a second dose should begin looking elsewhere for an appointment.
Dr. Christ was asked about the state’s struggle with supply issues and the issue of being unable to book second appointments.
She said that those who received a vaccine by Maricopa County will be able to look for second doses at other locations like State Farm Stadium, or other providers that come online in the coming weeks.
