Phase 2B vaccine sign-up day: So far just a series of site errors and busy signals for me

MANCHESTER, NH – I’ve waited this long, so I guess it’s just another day in pandemic history. But the state’s highly-promoted Vaccine & Immunization Interface (VINI) is down for the count as of Monday morning. This day is supposed to be for people age 50-64 to sign up and make an appointment.

That includes me.

Before I had a chance to try I heard from a regular reader of the Ink Link who had tried and failed to log in – he got an error message. So he tried calling 211, which is the protocol for “error messages,” and when he selected “1” for COVID-related questions, he got an immediate busy signal.

This gave me the chance to see for myself what the problem might be. I logged on to the state’s site, answered all the questions – most of which had to do with having allergic reactions to things, including the ingredients in the various vaccines – then entered my personal information.

I got an immediate error message:

Not knowing who my administrator is, I called 211, as directed on the VINI home page, for errors.

At the prompt for COVID-related questions, I hit “1” and immediately got a busy signal. I called back three more times. Same.

I then circled back to the vaccine site and tried again. This time I got the same “contact your administrator” message which then disappeared and I got a sign-in prompt.

Yay.

So I tried signing in using my email and my complicated password, and got another error message:

Not one to be deterred – although I could feel my pre-existing blood pressure condition kicking in – I went back to the VINI home page where I saw a new message:

I was a little appeased to know it wasn’t me, I guess. But also, the weekend message on the site was that it was down for technical upgrades in anticipation of today’s Phase 2B sign-ups, which makes me wonder who was working diligently over the weekend to make sure I could sign up today.

I am disappointed that the billions of dollars NH has received from the federal government to manage COVID-19 – including vaccines – is not working for me today. It’s been a long year, and while I feel fortunate to be in good health right now, and will remain careful when I go out into the world, I am longing to see my adult children again, all in one place. I’m hopeful that the vaccine program will be part of a return to normalcy for myself, and for everyone.

Come on, New Hampshire. I’ve written countless stories about how we’re a hub of technological innovation. Couldn’t we get some tech geniuses on this one?