NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — There's a push within the City Council to streamline the way COVID-19 vaccine appointments are booked online.
Manhattan City Councilman Mark Levine, the chair of the Health Committee, has drafted a bill to create a single, comprehensive website that simplifies the process.
"It's so complicated and so time consuming to navigate dozens of websites right now that it is, in effect, blocking out the most vulnerable people, including seniors," Levine said.
His proposal calls for a website that would allow users to track providers and book appointments.
It's an idea that Mayor Bill de Blasio said sounds good on paper.
"It would be great if everything was seamless and interconnected, meaning all the private hospitals, all the public hospitals, all the pharmacy companies, all the health care providers, CityMD, you name it, if everyone was under one umbrella that would be great," de Blasio said.
But the mayor insists that's not how the health care system works.
"You can get them on the same page on some of the scheduling, you can get them to volunteer to agree to some common approaches, but you can't just flick a switch and everyone's on the same exact system," de Blasio said.
Levine said it can be done, comparing it to air travel.
"This is the kind of thing that you do when you book an airline ticket and frankly you probably have to give more personal information to do that than you would to book a vaccine appointment," Levine said.
It's not clear if the mayor will support the legislation.
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