We connect leftover doses to people who want to get vaccinated.

 Vaccination Standby List - Sign up to be notified about leftover doses

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Vaccination locations sometimes have unused, extra doses of COVID vaccine they must either use or throw out. We give providers like pharmacies or clinics with leftover doses a way to reach nearby people looking to get vaccinated on a moment's notice.

No wasted vaccine. No hours-long lines. Verified providers.

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I understand that signing up does not guarantee that I will receive a COVID vaccine or a notification for one. Vaccination Standby does not enroll me in any appointments or vaccine waitlists.

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 on how we store and use this information. See full 

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If a vaccination location needs to use doses ASAP, we get the word out to locals who immediately want the vaccine.

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Leftovers happen. People miss their appointments. Vials come with extra doses. The Moderna and Pfizer vaccines are extremely temperature sensitive. Any thawed vials must be used within 6 hours, or they get thrown out.

Until now, people have been lining up for hours for the chance to get a one of these leftover doses.

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Vaccination Standby lets providers with extra, unused doses reach people within driving distance who want to get vaccinated. A provider posts a drop with the number of doses + any instructions. If it’s their first time posting a drop, we verify its authenticity and register them for faster drops later.

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If you’ve signed up here, we’ll send you a text message if your address is nearby. You have 15 minutes to confirm that you want one, and can start heading over immediately. When you arrive, 

, and you should follow any instructions from the provider.

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That's it! You’re signed up. Note: we no longer send confirmation texts. We're in the process of piloting the service, and you may hear from us soon.

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Something went wrong. We recently announced we are joining forces with Dr. B. Read the 

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! We are excited to unify our efforts to help avoid waste and get people vaccinated. To register, head over to 

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All we can prove is we are real people who have lived decent lives. We wouldn't risk our personal and professional reputations for a list of phone numbers and ZIP codes, and we are committed to being true to our word with vaxstandby.com.

Jimmy Chion works at The New York Times; you can find 

 with his attribution (at the bottom of the page), and a 

 from his time at Dropbox. Both of us have updated our LinkedIns (

) to show we're indeed the co-founders of Vax Standby.

We launched February 1st. Media about us will come out soon, and we're continuing to build our team.

As more providers begin offering the vaccine, the amount leftover will increase. Vaccine waste has been low, but leftovers are bound to happen. Why? 

Each vial of the Pfizer and Moderna COVID vaccines come with 5 and 10 doses, respectively.

The vaccines are kept in extremely cold temperatures.

 To be used, they must be thawed and prepared. Once thawed or opened, they cannot be refrozen, and 

Storing Vaccine Vials

Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine

Hospitals Discover a Surprise in Their Vaccine Deliveries: Extra Doses

systems for trying to match the high demand for the small leftover supply

, but they are all specific to a single location or provider. 

A Shaw's in DC uses deli counter numbers.

 Many pharmacies are simply handing them out to whoever is nearby.

Trying not to waste a single drop of coronavirus vaccine

Random People Are Lining Up to Get Vaccinated in D.C. Grocery Stores

 verified provider near you has a leftover dose, while also giving providers access to the largest list of people ready to be vaccinated at a moment's notice. 

In dire situations, and where legally possible, vaccination locations may opt to use the doses as fast as possible, regardless of priority group. For example, when a 

, vaccinators tried to prioritize older patients, but ultimately their top priority was to use all 1,600 doses before they expired.

Without asking for more detailed information about you, we cannot determine your priority group. If a vaccination location has extras, and wants to administer them to a certain priority group, they can specify that in instructions that will get forwarded to you. 

If you then do indeed self-identify as being in that priority group, and go to the vaccination location, it is ultimately up to the vaccinator if you will get a dose.

We're in the process of piloting the service with providers. The general idea is that providers (e.g. pharmacies, clinics, pop-up locations) can use Vaccination Standby to notify people in the immediate area. After we register a provider, they are given special access to use our service to notify people at-will. To avoid a rush of people to one location, the provider may limit the number of people notified and include special instructions.

The provider may access this service through an API or this website. If you are a provider and would like to discuss, please email hello@vaxstandby.com.

While the policy and scheduling of each location may differ, most providers will have a system to register for the second dose, even for leftover doses. 

The CDC also currently advises that even if you can’t get a second shot at least 3 or 4 weeks later (for the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, respectively), you won’t need to repeat your first shot.

 Although not ideal, you may get your second dose up to 

COVID-19 Vaccine FAQs for Healthcare Professionals

In short, if you are able to get your first dose, the provider will have a procedure for you to schedule your second dose. 

You should not use Vaccination Standby for your second dose.

Instructions will vary depending on provider. In general, from the text message, we'll provide a link for you to see the most up-to-date information we have about the leftovers. From there, you can let us know whether you're on your way or are declining.

 ask for any personal information in our text messages. 

You are eligible to sign up for our standby list if you meet all the following requirements:

You are 16 years of age or older. (Note: the Pfizer vaccine is approved for 16+; the Moderna vaccine, for 18+.)

You have a telephone number that can receive text messages. (Note: Google Voice offers a free phone number).

You have not already received a dose of a COVID vaccine.

Legally and medically, you are otherwise able to receive the vaccine, if it was available to you.

Because word has gotten out that some places have had extra doses, people have been lining up for hours. Vaccine Standby aims to reduce this behavior by providing an alternative. If you wait until a vaccine location closes, it not only could be a waste of time for you, but it endangers others by creating crowds and overwhelming the already-busy vaccine providers.

We send a text message to the phone number you provide whenever there is a nearby provider that has extra doses. We determine whether the provider is near you by estimating the distance between the provider and your ZIP code. If the driving time is less than the time before the doses expire, you're eligible to be notified.

If you do not wish to sign up with your normal phone number, we encourage you to sign up with a 

If you don't want to sign up with your phone number, you can sign up for a 

, which gives you a free phone number that you can optionally connect to your current phone number. All we need is way to contact you!

No. We will never give providers or vaccine locations any information about you.

Once you arrive, if you do get a vaccine, you will go through the standard process and paperwork to receive it. Vaccination Standby does not receive any information you give to the provider.

How will providers know you came from Vaccination Standby? We may give you a code word (e.g. "lemonade") that must match the provider's codeword.

This answer was updated on 02/07/21. Previously we stated we may share the info after you have confirmed you are en route to a provider. After consideration, we can avoid this. We have never shared any info about any of our users, and we promise we will not do so under any circumstances.

Vaccination Standby is 100% free for those signing up to receive a vaccine, and will always remain free.

We do not make any revenue from this project. (And with server and third-party services costs, we are investing our own money.) It is entirely a side project by two friends who want to help out.

Text STOP to (484) 673-6276. If you want to delete your data, text DELETE instead. 

Note: if you unsubscribe first, we will not receive DELETE message. If you unsubscribed and want to delete your data, first text START, and then DELETE. You may then text STOP again to unsubscribe.

Currently, we are only operating in the US. 

At the moment, we are looking for advisors in the medical field who can help guide our strategy. In addition, we are looking for vaccine providers – pharmacies, clinics, hospitals that are or will be administering the COVID-19 vaccine – who want to help pilot the service.

The standby list for leftover COVID vaccine

How it works

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Questions? We have some answers.

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