The White House has downplayed the problem, with the assistant press secretary telling The Verge that the errors were a small percentage of overall experiences. Jen Psaki said that every website comes with risk. We don't know if there will be a bug or two.
citizens have stepped in via the internet, as has been the case many times during this Pandemic, where the government has failed.
Immediately after the site's launch, there were posts from people wanting to donate tests, and some groups that helped people find vaccine appointments last year pivoted to helping people get tests. The group Maryland Vaccine Hunters started out with information about vaccine appointments, but now posts information about where to buy rapid tests and facilitates test donations.
Community organizations that trade goods and services for people in need have gone mainstream during the Pandemic and have become more active by offering protective equipment, helping people book vaccine appointments and distributing tests.
One such group is Serve Your City, a Washington, DC nonprofit that works with the city's homeless population. To figure out who needed tests, Serve Your City referred to data from the hotline it set up to help underprivileged people get vaccine appointments.
These efforts require reliable internet access. There is a thread of people willing to donate tests on the Maryland Vaccine Hunters Facebook page. How can they help people who can't get online?
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