Vaccine Eligibility? Phase Finder Tool Going Away March 31

To some, it's been a struggle to figure out their vaccine eligibility. Now, it might become more challenging.

After months of pushing repeatedly for citizens in WA to go to the Phase Finder online tool to determine their eligibility, it's going away--and soon.

March 31 is the last day it will be able to be accessed according to WA state health officials. In it's place will be a new Vaccine Locator tool online.

This online site will give you vaccine appointment availability using your zip code, within a 50-mile radius. As for whether you're eligible, WSDOH officials say people should visit the vaccine allocation and prioritization portion of their COVID website.

At this site you have to scroll down to:

Washington State COVID-19 Vaccine Allocation Guidance

Then click on the visual timeline of phases. It's a PDF that shows what age groups are eligible and when.

According to reports, WSDOH officials are pushing people towards the newer Vaccine Locator page; anyone who goes to the old Phase Finder page after tomorrow is supposed to be automatically directed to the new page.

An estimated 5 million WA residents have not received any COVID vaccines yet, largely due to the tiered system of who goes first.  No specific reasons were given as to why the Phase Finder is being discontinued, at least we were not able to find any.

It is likely this could cause additional confusion for citizens, as the state spent considerable time and effort pushing the Phase Finder concept only to do away with it now.

However, WSDOH officials did say this newer system will speed up the process, saying the state's online eligibility tool is "no longer needed."