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New York on Monday announced it would make all adult residents eligible to receive a coronavirus vaccine by April 6, a symbolic change in the state’s recovery from a deadly pandemic that has killed tens of thousands of residents and crippled the state’s economy.
Still, the expansion will significantly test the state’s healthcare apparatus, which will face a flood of newly eligible residents seeking coveted appointments as vaccine supply matches demand.
The race to vaccinate New Yorkers comes at a critical time in the pandemic: the state is seeing new cases of the virus at one of the highest rates in the country, with several more contagious variants of the virus continuing to spread.
“We can see the light at the end of the tunnel, but until we get there, it’s more important than ever that every New Yorker wears a mask, walks away socially and obeys all safety guidelines,” said the Governor Andrew M. Cuomo said in a statement Monday.
The Expanded Immunization Program puts New York on track to beat President Biden’s goal of making every adult in the country eligible for a vaccine by May 1. Prior to Monday, it was one of the few states that had yet to set a timeline for doing so. .
New York will first allow residents 30 and over to start getting vaccinated on Tuesday. It will then extend to every 16 years and over on April 6. The expansion comes a year after the worst period of the initial coronavirus outbreak in New York state.
Asante Mensah, 42, smiled when he learned that he would soon be eligible for the vaccine.
“It’s so awesome,” said Mr. Mensah, a security guard who lives in Brooklyn.
Samra Albertine, 17, said she intended to make an appointment as soon as she became eligible.
“It makes me less likely to contract the virus,” she says. “And I want to see more people.”
Even as Mr Cuomo gradually relaxed vaccine eligibility criteria over the past month, lowering age thresholds and expanding the pool of skilled workers, he expressed reluctance to set a specific target date to remove them. state requirements.
The governor said last week that he was unwilling to set a timetable for more widespread vaccination until he was more convinced that New York would have an adequate supply of vaccines for its people.
“I just want to make sure that the allocation forecast we’re getting from the federal government is correct, frankly,” Cuomo said at a press conference last week. “I don’t mean, ‘We’re going to open up to 30 in three weeks,’ and then something happens with the allowance.”
A spokesperson for the governor did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Even before expanding eligibility, the state had faced concerns about its ability to deliver vaccines to those who needed them most. Those looking for appointments had to check dozens of websites, with New York State and City having completely separate scheduling systems, both of which favored residents who had high-speed internet access or had ample time. time to sit down and refresh the sites for the dates.
Marian Carney Ryan, 51, a teacher who lives in Rochester, said making an appointment for her photo had been a complicated business.
“It was a huge competition,” Ms. Ryan said. “It was like buying tickets to a Rolling Stones concert.”
Just hours after Mr. Cuomo’s announcement, there were signs that the demand for nominations for the newly eligible could be overwhelming. TurboVax, a website that compiles the availability of city and state immunization systems to help people find open appointments, said on Twitter that 22,000 users were looking for vaccine niches on its site Monday afternoon – more than four times its previous high.
As of Monday, 29.6% of New York state residents had received at least one shot of the vaccine, while 16.8% were fully immunized, according to data from the state’s health department.
In New York City, about 32% of adults have received at least one dose of the vaccine, according to city data. The city stepped up its vaccination pace last month, with about 66,000 doses of the vaccine administered per day in March, up from about 44,000 per day in February.
While many are anxious to receive the vaccine as soon as possible, the state still has to face a number of people who are skeptical of coronavirus vaccines or reluctant to get vaccinated, even though studies have shown the vaccines to be safe. and efficient.
Public health experts have repeatedly stressed the need for widespread immunity to limit the spread of the disease and facilitate further reopening. The state has launched campaigns to tackle vaccine reluctance, which could threaten efforts to slow the spread of the virus.
Keishorne Scott, 34, a life coach in Brooklyn, said while he was happy that more people were eligible, he did not immediately plan to get the vaccine. Instead, he wanted to wait and see if those who received the vaccine had any negative side effects.
“I think this is one more step,” Scott said. “Security is another reason people want it, but it’s a challenge. A lot of people are still afraid. “
New York, like states across the country, has also faced significant concerns about equitable access to vaccines, especially in low-income New York City communities of color that have been hit hardest by the virus but where vaccinations are late.
Authorities worked to set up a number of vaccination sites in these areas, but the disparity persisted. Data from the city shows that among residents who received a dose of the vaccine and whose race was recorded, about 37 percent were white, 19 percent were Latino, 19 percent were Asian, and 14 percent were black. Latino and black residents were particularly under-represented: the city’s population is made up of around 29% Latin Americans and 24% black.
The continued expansion of vaccination comes as New York City has added new cases of the virus at one of the highest rates among U.S. states. As of Monday, the state had a seven-day average of 49 new cases of the virus per day per 100,000 population, second by a fraction of a percent in New Jersey, according to a New York Times database.
The United States as a whole had an average of 19 new cases per 100,000 population, although cases are rising again as variants spread and many state leaders have relaxed restrictions.
Even as the number of new cases continues to rise in New York City, the state has failed to cope with the level of devastation it experienced a year ago, when hospitals were overwhelmed with patients and patients. mortuaries overflowed.
Mr Cuomo said for months that vaccinations would be critical to the state’s ability to reopen closed businesses and increase capacity limits. Last month, the governor authorized the resumption of sporting events and concerts in large venues with limited capacity. Earlier this month, theaters, among the first businesses to close last year, were able to bring back audiences, also with limited capacity.
New York restaurants are also allowed to serve diners indoors at a 50% capacity, their highest level of indoor dining since Mr Cuomo closed them last year at the start of the pandemic. . (In the rest of the state, the maximum capacity is 75%.)
Nate Schweber contributed reporting.
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