I Team

Californians describe difficulties registering for digital vaccine card

ByMelanie Woodrow KGO logo

Saturday, August 14, 2021

Issues registering for digital vaccine card? You're not alone

California residents are struggling to register for their online vaccine card.

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- With cities like San Francisco making vaccine verification mandatory for indoor activities like restaurants and gyms, more and more people are attempting to register their vaccine record digitally with the state.

Lafayette resident Rik Sheldon attempted to register.

"The state, and perhaps even the country, is headed that way potentially, and I wanted to be in the system as opposed to having this card that might not even be valid in the future," said Sheldon.

Sheldon and his wife both received the Pfizer vaccine.

"Her registration went very swimmingly, got her QR code right away, so I knew what was supposed to happen. But when I entered my information, it said there was an error and my information was not linked properly," said Sheldon.

"I was not too happy about it," he continued.

Muneeb Khan in Foster City had a similar experience.

"When I did mine everything came out correct. I was done within five minutes. There were no problems," said Khan.

"My parents weren't so lucky," he continued.

VIDEO: SF issues vaccine mandate for indoor settings like bars, restaurants and gyms

Proof of vaccination will be required at indoor bars, restaurants, clubs, theaters and entertainment venues, as well as indoor gyms and other fitness establishments. This does not include individuals ordering or picking up food or drink to go.

When his mom tried to register, only one dose came up.

"But it was the second date and the second dose is completely missing. With my dad the two dates are flipped," said Khan.

Khan's parents could register, but the information that came back was incorrect.

The California Department of Public Health declined an interview but told the ABC7 News I-Team more than 2.5 million digital records have been delivered to date, and that more than 85% of people who request their record have it delivered.

CDPH says when there's a delay in someone retrieving their record, it is due to missing or incorrect contact information that was not sent to the state, and therefore isn't in the state's system.

In other words, what a vaccinated person enters into the my-vaccine-record portal might not match the information someone else entered and sent to the state.

CDPH recommends using the virtual assistant tool on its website. Ultimately, that's what worked for Sheldon after he uploaded his ID and vaccination card.

"Finally after two weeks, it finally was resolved and I got the code," said Sheldon.

Khan's parents did the same but they're still waiting.

"I'm not surprised that it hasn't gone smoothly, but the sense of urgency, especially in a pandemic, I think they'll try to fix these problems quicker than other state programs," said Khan.

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