October Covid (possible @ content)

[fernweh]

Has anyone seen any updated info on vaccine availability? I was schedule to go this past Thursday at CVS and got a notification on Wednesday evening canceling my appointment because they didn’t have any supplies.

I have tried searching for when it will be widely available so I don’t keep making appointments and getting canceled on and have been able to find any information beyond “it’s not a supply issue, it’s a distribution issue”.

[StrawberryBlondie]

I got mine at CVS on Friday and it sounded like they'd just gotten their supply in the previous day. So probably keep trying? At least around here, it seems like CVS is only allowing you to schedule when they have stock available.

[redhead610]

I was able to get mine at my local grocery store pharmacy last week, without an appt.


@@
2 of my kids have appts scheduled at CVS (this week and next week, due to scheduling conflicts); my <5 yr old it said "not eligible yet" so I'll ask about that when I'm there.

[ellipses84]

Oct 2, 2023 9:16:00 GMT -5 redhead610 said:

I was able to get mine at my local grocery store pharmacy last week, without an appt.


@@
2 of my kids have appts scheduled at CVS (this week and next week, due to scheduling conflicts); my <5 yr old it said "not eligible yet" so I'll ask about that when I'm there.

@@our pediatrician said they didn’t have any and our best bet would be to go to the pharmacy for my kids ages, but they are 7+.

[VillainV]

H and I got ours yesterday at Walgreens (Moderna) along with the flu shot.


@@@@@@

They hadn’t received their pediatric doses yet, I guess there was some kind of delay. They should get them in a few weeks? C wasn’t upset to only get his flu shot instead of both, but now we need to take him back again.

[pixy0stix]

@@@@

Pediatricians, parents struggle to get updated covid vaccine for kids - wapo.st/3tlP4E5

[devonpow]

@@ I can’t even schedule a dose for my 11 year old still - I haven’t seen an under 12 shot appointment at all, and I don’t know any friends who have been able to get their kids boosted yet. I was at cvs yesterday and asked the pharmacist if they would be getting pediatric doses in at all and he said he had no idea but not to count on it. I’m in a major urban area, it’s a little crazy how hard it is to find this booster.

[sugarbear1]

I am having to drive out of the county to get it, and the pharmacist said she didn't know why they don't have it here. I made the appointment last week and just called to see if they had it in stock. They do, but it will require a 90 minute round trip. They do not have pediatric doses yet.

[Susie]

I thought it was interesting that providers prefer Moderna for kids vs. Pfizer because it comes in single dose vials vs. 3 dose vials (WaPo article linked above).  I didn't realize the two companies were packaging differently.

Our fam is done, we got adults done at two CVS locations and kids done at Walmart.  But it was super stressful, and we had a few false starts on the kids'.  My kids got the last 2 Moderna doses at the Walmart we schlepped out to on Friday, and they initially tried to turn us away until we explained that yes we had appointments.  Credit to them, they were really good about reserving doses for people who had made appointments.  They'd used up all their stock but for our appointment doses.  

I'm totally over Walgreens, for their allowing people to make appointments for stock they don't have, and then not having the courtesy/logistics in place to even communicate a cancellation when the doses aren't in stock.  At least give me the courtesy of canceling!  It creates so much frustration all around making people call the pharmacy to ensure stock before driving over.  I really feel for the Walgreens retail pharmacists who are stuck with that system, and the unhappy customers.

Reactions were totally mixed in our fam.  H and I got Pfizer; I had no reaction while he had a rough night/next day.  Both kids got Moderna, and my 4 yo had no reaction while my 7 yo felt terrible the entire next day.  Headache, no appetite, muscle aches, and chills.  I felt so badly for her, because I've been there with past doses.  On Sunday she was complaining of pain that I immediately recognized as swollen lymph node in her armpit.

[StrawberryBlondie]

Update on our reactions -

Me (moderna): fairly sore arm. More sore than a flu shot, less sore than a tetanus shot. Started same day, was mostly gone by the next day

DH (Pfizer): slightly sore arm next day. Maybe a little more tired than usual next day.

DD (Pfizer): very slightly sore arm.

[minzy]

I just got Moderna over lunch. I’m half hoping to feel lousy so I can lay all day in bed tomorrow instead of having to be productive in my office.

[fluffycookie]

All three of use got our shots (Pfizer) yesterday. We ended up going to Walgreen's because CVS kept cancelling the appointments the day before. DS woke up this morning with a low grade fever and the chills/aches so he stayed home. MH had a headache and chills and I just had a headache and feeling exhausted. All three of us have commented on how sore our arms are from the shot. Mine was sore and almost tingly from the shoulder to my wrist.

[audette]

*crossing fingers*

DH and I have appointments at Walgreens. Him tonight, me tomorrow night. Mostly because the system stalled out when I was trying to schedule my appointment immediately after his. I figure I'll go with him tonight and see if I can get my shot at the same time.

But, as an added twist... I got a phone call from Walgreens at lunch. Simply a human asking me to call back, which I did. Even more fun - the voicemail didn't say _which_ Walgreens they were calling from, and I had just prior to that picked up a script at a Walgreens that is different from where we are getting our vaccines. So I tried simply calling the number that showed up in my phone for the received call, and ended up on the line with a third Walgreens location. So there is some sort of strangeness to how their phone system works here, making it all even more fun.

Anyways, spoke with folks at all three relevant Walgreens, and none know who or why I was called.

[noodleoo]

@@@
My local CVS finally has appts up for under 12! They are in 2 weeks. However, DD2 turns 5 Saturday and it won’t let me schedule for her even tho she will be 5 by the time of the available appts. Seriously?!? I give up. I’m just going to wait until Sat so I can schedule them together. I’m tired of this being harder than it should be.

[melissa]

@@ DH, two kids and myself have appointments at CVS next Monday for both flu and COVID shots at the same time. Fingers crossed that we don't get a cancellation email. I did like how I was able to schedule a group instead of having to schedule each one of us individually.

I'm secretly hoping not to feel good the next day so I can take off of work.

[gardengal]

@
Huzzah! My 10yo got his booster at cvs after a failed Walgreens attempt a week ago

[chickadee77]

Agree with Susie about Walgreens. Last time (or two) they didn't even bother to cancel our appointments. We got there, kids in tow, did all the BS paperwork (that we'd already done online, but they couldn't figure it out) waited for 30 minutes, to be told, "Oh, we don't have the bivalent, just the whatever." I realize it might just be our location, but ugh.

So happy for everyone finding what they need. I think we lucked out with CVS this time, and having both kids over 5yo helped a lot, too. What a shitshow - again! - overall.

I don't even know who to be mad at. It's not really the pharmacies' faults (except for allowing people to book for something they don't have and not notifying/canceling somehow - though that could be more of a corporate issue?). Just frustrating.

[VillainV]

Oct 2, 2023 17:01:07 GMT -5 chickadee77 said:

Agree with Susie about Walgreens. Last time (or two) they didn't even bother to cancel our appointments. We got there, kids in tow, did all the BS paperwork (that we'd already done online, but they couldn't figure it out) waited for 30 minutes, to be told, "Oh, we don't have the bivalent, just the whatever." I realize it might just be our location, but ugh.

So happy for everyone finding what they need. I think we lucked out with CVS this time, and having both kids over 5yo helped a lot, too. What a shitshow - again! - overall.

I don't even know who to be mad at. It's not really the pharmacies' faults (except for allowing people to book for something they don't have and not notifying/canceling somehow - though that could be more of a corporate issue?). Just frustrating.

Same thing happened to us at Walgreens on Sunday. They didn’t even realize that the website was allowing people to schedule appointments for kids. I guess they were supposed to have it in stock, which is probably why the website let us schedule, but then when it didn’t come in it never triggered any alert or notification or whatever. C still got the flu shot, so all wasn’t lost….but it sucks to have to make two separate appointments.

[Bad Dingo]

I received our free covid tests. They originally expired in January 2023 and it was extended to January 2024.

[Roc A Bee]

We (family of 4) got ours on Saturday at a CVS. I got a text the night before canceling, but I called the day off and they had supply. I think their online scheduling system may be off. I’d definitely call directly.

We got flu shots at the same time.

@@@
Everyone had a sore arm other than SD who said she was feverish overnight. She didn’t wake us up and just took ibruprofen herself (she’s nearly 17).

[macmars45]

Oct 2, 2023 13:45:09 GMT -5 Susie said:

I'm totally over Walgreens, for their allowing people to make appointments for stock they don't have, and then not having the courtesy/logistics in place to even communicate a cancellation when the doses aren't in stock.  At least give me the courtesy of canceling!  It creates so much frustration all around making people call the pharmacy to ensure stock before driving over.  I really feel for the Walgreens retail pharmacists who are stuck with that system, and the unhappy customers.

My local Walgreens don't answer their phones so you have to physically go in & wait in line to find out they didn't get the stock in. I specifically asked last time we did this song and dance. The pharmacy tech swore up & down that they call everyone in those instances but I never got any such call.

I'll be trying Walmart or Fred Myers this time around. There isn't CVS local to me.

[kitty]

Oct 2, 2023 15:12:59 GMT -5 noodleoo said:

@@@
My local CVS finally has appts up for under 12! They are in 2 weeks. However, DD2 turns 5 Saturday and it won’t let me schedule for her even tho she will be 5 by the time of the available appts. Seriously?!? I give up. I’m just going to wait until Sat so I can schedule them together. I’m tired of this being harder than it should be.

This happened to me last year! I lied about the birthdate by a few days to get the appointment and then when I got there told them that I made a mistake online. I didn’t feel too guilty because people weren’t exactly lining up to get them last fall.

[tacokick]

macmars45 said:

I'll be trying Walmart or Fred Myers this time around. There isn't CVS local to me.

Out of curiosity, if you don’t have CVS, do you have Target? If so, do your Targets have pharmacies? Ours all have mini CVS in them where the Target pharmacy used to be.

I saw someone else online mention they didn’t have CVS and I can’t escape them.

[5kcandlesinthewind]

Oct 2, 2023 21:28:40 GMT -5 macmars45 said:

Oct 2, 2023 13:45:09 GMT -5 Susie said:

I'm totally over Walgreens, for their allowing people to make appointments for stock they don't have, and then not having the courtesy/logistics in place to even communicate a cancellation when the doses aren't in stock.  At least give me the courtesy of canceling!  It creates so much frustration all around making people call the pharmacy to ensure stock before driving over.  I really feel for the Walgreens retail pharmacists who are stuck with that system, and the unhappy customers.

My local Walgreens don't answer their phones so you have to physically go in & wait in line to find out they didn't get the stock in. I specifically asked last time we did this song and dance. The pharmacy tech swore up & down that they call everyone in those instances but I never got any such call.

I'll be trying Walmart or Fred Myers this time around. There isn't CVS local to me.

I had appointments booked for me & the 8 year old at Walgreens over the weekend, and they called a few days before to cancel.  I rebooked online for myself for another day/location, and that time, they must have just canceled it in the system because I got a text notification.  They must have been tired of getting yelled at.  I was supposed to go last night, but wasn't feeling well so I cancelled and rescheduled for later this week just in case. I was finally able to get the 8 year old an appointment for Sun. at CVS, but I'm not holding my breath at this point.

[ssmjlm]

I tried last week and Walgreens wasn't scheduling anything (system issues) and CVS wouldn't let me schedule out at all.

We're hoping to get them end of October based on post Thanksgiving travel anyway.

[shauni27]

our region, including our hospital, does not have any vaccine as of yet.

[msmerymac]

I scheduled mine at CVS (got all my others at RiteAid, but I couldn't schedule through them, maybe due to availability?) for last Wednesday and had it canceled the day before. I now have it scheduled for next Monday, so *fingers crossed*

@@@@

I've been calling the pediatrician's office and they said they don't know anyone who has it now, and the best they can tell me is to try back at the end of next week. My daughter needs her initial 2 shot series. She's 10 months, I've just been waiting for the updated series, but also didn't want to do it at the same time as her 12 month shots.

[msmerymac]

Oct 3, 2023 2:00:53 GMT -5 tacokick said:

macmars45 said:

I'll be trying Walmart or Fred Myers this time around. There isn't CVS local to me.

Out of curiosity, if you don’t have CVS, do you have Target? If so, do your Targets have pharmacies? Ours all have mini CVS in them where the Target pharmacy used to be.

I saw someone else online mention they didn’t have CVS and I can’t escape them.

There are like 4 on the same road, within a 4-5 mile stretch, so I have to specify the address of mine every time I'm at the doctor. 

[stemmie]

This happened to a friend who lives in San Diego. She wanted to do COVID and flu for both her and her DH. CVS didn't contact her because they had flu vaccine available. She was pissed, as wanted to do both together. She has a vaccine appointment for both at Walgreen's later today.

I had no problem getting my family done at CVS on 9/20 or mom done at her Rite Aid last week near Philly. Another friend reports no issues with her mom, self and son at CVS in Ohio.

[picksthemusic]

We haven't gotten our Covid vaccines yet, with no notification about arrival date in sight. It's so frustrating. I will be making appts for me and DH at a pharmacy.

@@@
I am hoping we have vaccines for the kids when they get their well checks, but no guarantee.