Saturday, February 27, 2021

Governor Cuomo Announces a Record High Over 175K Doses of COVID-19 Vaccine Administered in 24 Hours

 

Over 4 Million Total Shots Administered To-date

Hotel Workers Can Be Added to Eligible Population Under 1B Prioritization Group; Local Health Departments Determine How, Where, When to Schedule Appointments in Their Jurisdictions

Following a Letter from Legislators Regarding Bronx Vaccination Disparities, the State Department of Health Will Work with the New York City Department of Health to Ensure this Inequity is Immediately Addressed

As of 1PM today, New York's Health Care Distribution Sites Have Administered 91% of First Doses

Vaccine Dashboard Will Update Daily to Provide Updates on the State's Vaccine Program; Go to ny.gov/vaccinetracker; Dashboard Now Includes Demographic Data

 Governor Cuomo announced 179,038 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in 24 hours, a new record for the state. As of 1:00 PM today, New York's health care distribution sites have administered 91 percent of first doses so far delivered. The week 11 allocation from the federal government is in the process of being delivered to providers for administration.

In addition, the Governor announced expanded eligibility for the COVID-19 vaccine to hotel workers. Hotels in many parts of the state serve as quarantine areas for COVID positive persons to isolate from their families. In turn, the staff at these facilities are being exposed to COVID regularly. Given the overall increase to the State's supply and the essential health care service that these hotel workers provide, the Governor is granting localities the flexibility to add hotel workers to the 1B vaccine prioritization group.

"Nearly 180,000 vaccinations in a single day is a major milestone in our ongoing efforts to ensure eligible New Yorkers, especially those in communities that were hit the hardest by COVID, have direct access to the vaccine," Governor Cuomo said. "However, we're still in a footrace to keep the infection rate down and drive vaccinations way up. While the infection rate is a function of our behavior, the rate of vaccination is tied directly to supply and right now demand for the vaccine is still far outpacing our supply. We will keep working with our federal partners and vast vaccine distribution network to dispatch doses as soon as we get them - with a focus on vulnerable and underserved communities - and get shots in arms as quickly and fairly as possible."

The Governor received a letter signed by Speaker Heastie, Senator Jamaal Bailey and other elected officials in the Bronx stating that the Bronx is not receiving an equitable share of vaccine compared to other boroughs in the City. Equity in vaccination is a priority for New York State and the Governor agrees that the allocation to the Bronx is low. The Governor believes this is especially inequitable as the Bronx has the highest COVID positivity rate in New York City. The Yankee Stadium allocation (which is a joint state and city site) should be increased and a second site in the northern Bronx should be added. The Department of Health will work with the New York City Department of Health to ensure this inequity is immediately addressed.

Approximately 10 million New Yorkers are currently eligible to receive the vaccine. New York's vast distribution network and large population of eligible individuals still far exceed the supply coming from the federal government. Due to limited supply, New Yorkers are encouraged to remain patient and are advised not to show up at vaccination sites without an appointment.

The 'Am I Eligible' screening tool has been updated for individuals with comorbidities and underlying conditions with new appointments released on a rolling basis over the next weeks. New Yorkers can use the following to show they are eligible:

  • Doctor's letter, or
  • Medical information evidencing comorbidity, or
  • Signed certification

Vaccination program numbers below are for doses distributed and delivered to New York for the state's vaccination program, and do not include those reserved for the federal government's Long Term Care Facility program. A breakdown of the data based on numbers reported to New York State as of 1:00 PM today is as follows. Beginning week 9, allocation totals are inclusive of some excess vaccine doses that have been reallocated from the federal Long Term Care Facility program. The allocation totals below include 33 percent of the week 11 allocation which will finish being distributed to New York provider sites on Sunday.

STATEWIDE BREAKDOWN

First Doses Received - 2,942,765

First Doses Administered - 2,674,839; 91%

Total Doses Received - 4,761,410

Second Doses Administered - 4,170,422

No comments:

Post a Comment