People in Ontario complaining of bonkers online waitlists for booking a COVID vaccine

Residents of Ontario are celebrating today after signups for COVID vaccines through the province's online booking portal were finally expanded to anyone 18 and older in a hot spot locale.

Unfortunately, though the welcome news is another awesome advancement toward getting more of the population vaxxed after months of a snails-pace immunization rollout, it appears that the online waiting lists to nab an appointment slot in some regions are even longer than the exasperating in-person lineups for pop-up clinics.

Ayooo I have lost any hope for vaccination despite being in a hotspot in Toronto 😭 18+ online booking had only opened for 15 minutes 💀 #COVID19 pic.twitter.com/QZU2xEGiWj

— Sahil Kumar (@s1222kumar) May 3, 2021

Before May 3, the notoriously busy and scantily-supplied pop-ups were the only way that those adults in hot spot postal codes who didn't qualify for a shot based on other provincial criteria — such as having a high-risk health condition — could get one.

Now, these residents can book for a shot in advance at a mass clinic directly through the website of the province or their local public health unit, which is a move that was supposed to make things easier and get more needles into arms quicker.

But just minutes into being able to book this morning, users were reporting glitches, lags, and online wait times of hours thanks to virtual lineups hundreds of thousands of people long.

Trying to register for the vaccine this morning, Toronto? So am I. The website is super glitchy and slow. Have patience and you’ll reach a virtual waiting line. We got this. Friend said it will be like finding concert tix.@allthecdnpoli @JohnTory @JILLSLASTWORD #toronto #covid pic.twitter.com/qh0W3pKKBc

— Mariam Magsi (@mariammagsi) May 3, 2021

Multiple people posted screenshots showing that there were well over a staggering 800,000 people waiting to book in.

As such, those in Toronto especially are once again comparing getting a vaccine appointment to participating in the Hunger Games, buying a PS5 or securing coveted merchandise from an exclusive drop.

Toronto isn’t working today, Toronto is fighting a virtual hunger games to get onto vaccination website.

— tchebotarev.eth 🇨🇦 (@tchebotarev) May 3, 2021

Many are also laughing at how difficult it still is to get a dose in Ontario so many months after they were first introduced, especially compared to the U.S., which has now innoculated more than 100 million people as Canadians look on.