When Massachusetts opened up vaccination appointments to those older than 65 and those with two or more comorbidities yesterday, the flood of people seeking appointments crashed the Vaxfinder website, leaving thousands frustrated. The website's failure is not just a public health problem — it’s also a political problem for Governor Charlie Baker, says Peter Kadzis, GBH News senior editor. Kadzis joined Joe Mathieu on Morning Edition to break down what the botched vaccine rollout could mean for the governor.
Baker has always considered himself a “logistics guy” adept at managing complex problems, which is why this rollout is a particularly bad look for him, said Kadzis: “I think that's why it hurts so much." He noted that, because Baker has been out in front of the public frequently during the pandemic, “the negative side is when something goes wrong, he owns it.”
Failing websites in times of major transition or crisis aren't a new problem in politics. As Kadzis noted, former Mass. Governor Deval Patrick faced a similar problem with the MassHealth website in 2014, and so did President Obama with the shaky rollout of HealthCare.gov in 2013. Now, Baker is doing his best to minimize the damage for a technical problem that was likely out of his hands.
“Baker's political standing is in the hands of a techie,” Kadzis said.
Watch: Kadzis gives Baker a failing grade for statewide vaccine rollout
On Boston Public Radio yesterday, Baker echoed the public’s frustrations, which Kadzis said showed Baker’s empathy: “My hair's on fire about the whole thing,” Baker said. “I can't even begin to tell you how pissed off I am. And people are working really hard to get [the website] fixed.”
Whether or not the rollout affects Baker’s approval ratings, which are among the highest of any governor in the country, is an important political question, according to Kadzis. As a Republican working with a Democratic legislature, Baker relies on his generally high approval ratings to get things done. “The Democrats smell blood in the water and are really going after him,” Kadzis said. “So if those ratings were to go down, I think you're going to see more pushback from the legislature.”
An analysis from Harvard Kennedy School gave Massachusetts an ‘F’ for its vaccine rollout, which Kadzis said was fair given the public perception of the website’s problems. However, Kadzis noted that some key metrics are going well for the state, as case positivity goes down and the number of people who have been vaccinated goes up.
“I think Baker's overall efforts deserve an 'A' for effort,” Kadzis said. “When it comes to perception, though, he's got a big problem because the people who are getting the vaccine, they're going to be happy. There are more people who aren't [getting the vaccine], and they are not happy. I know it sounds passé to put it that way, but it's all about the numbers.”
