Barbara Miller had but two questions for the pharmacist who administered her first dose of the covid-19 vaccine Tuesday at the Giant Eagle off of Camp Horne Road.

Could she take Tylenol if her arm became sore, and could she still have a glass of wine? The answer to both was yes.

“It was a lot of time on the computer, going to different sites — Rite Aid, a few others — just a lot of time and plugging in dates and not getting anything to come up,” Miller, of Mt. Washington, said of the appointment-making process. “It was a challenge.”

Giant Eagle pharmacies, like most across Pennsylvania and beyond, are feeling the pressure from customers trying to get the covid-19 vaccine. Vic Vercammen, chief pandemic officer for Giant Eagle, says he understands the frustrations — vaccine providers, too, are frustrated by the slim supply that does not match the high demand.

“We just ask for patience,” he said. “We all wish we had more supply, we all wish we could offer more appointments. We’re all doing the best we can right now.”

He noted communication with the state and federal governments has been clear in terms of when vaccine shipments will arrive and how much they will include.

The announcement by the Biden administration that additional doses of the vaccine will go directly to providers in the federal pharmacy partnership program — in Pennsylvania, TopCo pharmacies and Rite Aid pharmacies — means more vaccination appointments could open up sooner than expected.

TopCo is a purchasing cooperative that represents a number of grocery store chains, including Giant Eagle.

“Certainly, that will help us open up additional appointment slots,” Vercammen said. The store’s pharmacies have vaccinated about 15,000 people in Pennsylvania.

The store’s pharmacies are not using a waitlist-type system for appointments, meaning if customers go to the pharmacy website and “then see an appointment slot, be assured there is a vaccine dose waiting for you,” he said.

“If you do not see any appointments available at a particular location, it either means they’re all full for that period of time or that store might not have received much vaccine,” he said. “Both are happening. We have unprecedented demand.”

It’s a problem everywhere — an issue of supply and demand — which is why Rebecca Voelker said she was amazed she was able to get an appointment. She, too, received her first dose of the vaccine Tuesday.

While getting the appointment wasn’t easy, she said, getting the vaccine was simple. Voelker, of Emsworth, said she showed up at the pharmacy, received her shot, got an appointment for her second dose, and that was that.

“I’m amazed I was able to get it,” she said of her appointment. “It was the luck of the draw.”

Miller said the frustration — the clicking and checking and waiting — was worth it.

“I’m happy to be here and get it,” she said. “I know a lot of people are having a very difficult time getting this.”

She said her first dose brought a shot of relief.

“I’m very relieved,” she said. “I think everybody that I know who has gotten the shot feels the same.”

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