Bethany Bump reports in the Times Union the latest foul-up in New York's vaccine distribution plan. New York's Office of Information Technology Services said Jan. 14 that someone shared an unpublished link to schedule appointments for COVID-19 vaccinations at several state-run sites without authorization. That had New Yorkers signing up for vaccine appointments at sites that have not even opened. "We are currently contacting everyone who used the unauthorized link to inform them of the situation," said Marcy Stevens, general counsel for the Office of Information Technology Services. Stevens did not say who was responsible. To get a COVID-19 vaccination, call the state's vaccination hotline at 1-833-NYS-4-VAX (1-833-697-4829) or go on the state Health Department's "Am I Eligible" website. The roll out of the vaccine locally has caused many problems from federal, state, and county officials, who have increased eligibility while vaccine doses are scarce, opened telephone hotlines that are forever busy or where calls go unanswered, and presented chaotic information to the public about distribution. Ulster County Executive Pat Ryan said Jan. 14 that a lack of COVID-19 vaccine locally could mean Ulster County temporarily halts inoculations this week, the Daily Freeman reports. "Every time I walk out of there with a great sense of both optimism and hope, because we are putting hundreds of vaccines in folks' arms, I also walk out of there with great frustration, because that site has much greater capacity and it is not being used right now," Ryan said about their Kingston distribution location. "That site could do up to 1,500 dosages a day, but we're well below that." Ulster County received 2,100 doses of vaccine last week, and none so far this week. Ulster County reported 112 newly diagnosed cases of COVID on Jan. 14, and Dutchess County had three more deaths, for 43 in January. Plus, Dutchess County announced another 273 positive tests. On Jan. 14, both Greene and Columbia County reported at least 50 new coronavirus cases, the first time that has happened. There were 165 new cases in Rensselaer County, and Albany County reported 273 positive tests.