If you’ve got impressive tech skills, medical knowledge, or even just some extra time on your hands to sit down and click a refresh button, it might be worth lending a virtual hand to a stranger and help them get vaccinated.
You’ll be joining groups of people who are taking on the burden of navigating confusing government websites and memorizing vaccine schedules, all with the hope of getting a COVID-19 vaccine to the people who need it.
As the country approaches President Joe Biden’s goal of 100 million administered doses, and amidst a new goal to open up eligibility to every American by May 1, the process remains difficult. Tech accessibility remains an issue among the elderly and disabled, and vaccine doses are still concentrated primarily among white Americans.
Lisa David Meyers, founder of the Facebook group New York COVID-19 Vaccine Info, has helped more than 5,000 people schedule vaccine appointments since her group began just two months ago. She says that what started as a small support group has become something of a full-time job, and her and the other volunteers are like family. “It literally is like a complete job. You know, some of us are up until midnight or are up at 6 a.m. trying to make sure that we’re staying ahead of all the [vaccine] drops,” Meyers explained. The volunteers help up to 50 strangers a day, extending community assistance far beyond their friends and family.
Joel Leyden founded his own Facebook group, New York/ Connecticut Vaccine Hunters and Angels, and its associated website www.VaccineAngel.com, one month ago. The Facebook group’s grown to include over 14,000 members. With a decades-long career in the tech world, Leyden felt like he could provide a vital service and fill in a gap where the government was failing. “This is all a learning experience for the United States of America,” he said. “I’ve never witnessed 14,000 people in a Facebook group helping each other 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”
Groups like these have popped up around the country and on all kinds of social media platforms, from Facebook, to instant messaging platform Discord, and online message boards on Reddit. They represent a community effort to pick up where the government is lagging. According to data published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 12 percent of the population has been fully vaccinated and 22 percent have received one dose. If you’re feeling like you need to do something tangible to help bring the pandemic to an end, this could be a good place to start.
Even with only a few months of experience under their belts, the two Facebook group leaders have learned a lot and want others to join their work. Here’s how you can help:
Volunteer with a group online
Take the lead from Meyers and Leyden and connect with those in need online — better yet, help the groups who have already figured out the best ways to quickly get people vaccinated.
“Vaccine angels,” what some have taken to calling these volunteers, help people search for availability, book appointments, and share updated information as it becomes available. In Meyer’s group, a dedicated group of 30 volunteers work essentially round-the-clock to scour the internet for available appointments. The group’s administrators, including Meyers, compile daily lists of appointment requests — collected through an online form that anyone can fill out — and work to find availability. Once volunteers check off these names, they post remaining availability on their Facebook or Discord channels.
The only skill required for this is patience, Meyers explains. It also helps to download an auto-refresh tool to quickly find new appointments.
While Meyers’ New York-based group is not currently accepting more volunteers, you can still help their work by sharing information from their page or connecting people you know with the group.
Meyers’ group focuses on New York state only, so if you want to help strangers closer to home, look for a local Facebook group in your area — search terms like “Vaccine Hunters,” “Vaccine Angels,” or “Vaccine Dumpster Diving” might help narrow your search. You can also search through websites like VaccineHunter.org, which have aggregated vaccine hunter Facebook groups that cover Texas, Kentucky, Washington D.C., Michigan, Oregon, and South Dakota, among others. Each group has different volunteer needs and processes, but a good place to start is contacting the group’s admin directly (you can find this information in the page’s “About” section).
Leyden’s group of volunteers is constantly seeking more help to make the process easier, especially those who have experience working with technology. “We really need some cyber professionals, some internet professionals who know infrastructure and know internet marketing, who can help us get the word out there and then make it easy for people to make appointments,” Leyden said. While Leyden’s groups are based in New York, Connecticut, and Maryland, they accept volunteers from around the country, and Leyden says he is looking to expand the group’s work elsewhere.
Start your own community group
Social media has quickly become one of the most important places we obtain information and solicit advice, so starting a communal online space in your town could contribute a lot to making sure people know how and when they can get vaccinated.
Leyden created another Facebook group just a two weeks ago, Vaccine Hunters/ Angels Massachusetts, that already has 5,000 members. He says that anyone interested in starting their own group can reach out directly to VaccineAngel.com to ask questions or get advice.
At the most basic level, starting a centralized online group provides a place for crowdsourcing knowledge and creating dialogue around the importance of getting vaccinated. “If you see that your neighborhood is not really being serviced and people are completely confused, I would recommend implementing the same thing — a place that people can go to for crowdsourcing,” Meyers says. “The best way to help people is just to stay on top of where to find the vaccine and sharing the information.”
Connect directly with neighbors, either in person or online
Meyers says one of the easiest ways to support widespread vaccination is just starting with the people close to you, and not only your friends and family. Meyers says her volunteers have reached out to food service workers in their neighborhoods, retail workers, and even “little old ladies” in their local grocery stores.
Some states, counties, and cities are also using volunteers to help at the vaccination sites themselves. Find out if that’s possible where you live. The Washington Post has a detailed guide on how to do this.
Know who you’re helping
There are two groups of people that online vaccine volunteers help — eligible people who have difficulty accessing state websites, struggle with tech literacy, or simply don’t have internet access, and people who aren’t eligible but are searching for excess doses. This distinction is important, and the process for helping each group vary.
For those in the eligible category, who Meyers’ group exclusively helps, the process has been streamlined. People searching for vaccine appointments fill out a simple form with basic medical information — the same information asked for by the state — and a volunteer reaches out directly to schedule an appointment as soon as they become available, whether through state or retail locations.
Leyden and other “vaccine hunters” that are connected through social media or online forums help non-eligible people, as well. But Leyden says that for those searching for excess vaccines, it’s a game of luck.
That’s where volunteers can help: Offer to call pharmacies asking about their procedures for excess vaccine doses and connect people who are waiting. The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommends that vaccines are made available “to broader population groups when vaccine supply at a certain location is in danger of being unused,” according to its website, and says that “pharmacies should use this guidance when making plans to ensure no dose is wasted.” Thus, each pharmacy will have different procedures. It’s crucial you speak to an actual pharmacist and not another employee to get the most accurate information, Leyden says. In Leyden’s system, excess doses are then shared in the group publicly for people to claim.
Offer non-tech help, too
Additionally, some eligible Americans need more than just help finding appointment slots. Meyers and Leyden have worked to provide transportation support to eligible people who need to get to appointments. This could include offering to schedule and pay for ride-sharing options or public transportation. Many volunteers also help make phone calls to pharmacists or other health professionals on behalf of people who need communication help. All of this work is done through the Facebook groups — post what you have to offer and a group admin can connect you with someone in need of support or a stranger in need will respond directly.
Become familiar with your state’s vaccination system and local pharmacies
Both Meyers and Leyden say the most difficult part of the vaccination process is how frequently guidelines expand and change. It’s made the volunteer groups into multitasking experts, and also means one of the best ways to help the process is to share updated information for your state with those who don’t have the time, resources, or ability to stay up-to-date themselves.
Each state has its own process for distributing vaccines, eligibility criteria, and process for setting up vaccine appointments. Figure out your state’s contact for vaccine information, find out the closest vaccine locations to those you’re helping, and pay attention to opening eligibility.
Fortunately, in the age of the internet and through the power of social media, you can provide these services and connect with strangers around the country, without even leaving your home.