BROOKLYN WEATHER

Mayor de Blasio Proposes Solutions to Increase the City’s Vaccine Rapidly Dwindling Supply

Mayor de Blasio Proposes Solutions to Increase the City’s Vaccine Rapidly Dwindling Supply

By Yehudit Garmaise                                                                                                                                                

     Nationwide shortages and distribution disruptions caused by bad weather could deplete the New York City’s supply of vaccines in the next 24 hours, Mayor Bill de Blasio warned this morning.

     The state and the pharmaceutical companies can be doing much more to provide the half a million doses delivered to New York City every week, the mayor said he needs to reach his goal to vaccinate five million New Yorkers by June.

   “When you get five million people vaccinated, you can imagine what that means: This city will really come back to life,” the mayor said this morning at his press conference. “When we vaccinate five million people, we are really turning the corner on this disease, and we can bring back our economy and our lives strong.”

   The city, however, cannot reach its vaccination goals without increased supply and more local control over the vaccination process to help speed it along.

   First, the mayor said that the city’s supply of vaccine has been slowed down because it requires approval from the state of New York, which also puts many restrictions on which locations can vaccinate which eligible New Yorkers.

   Secondly, the state and federal government both should recognize, the mayor said, that 20% of the people who are being vaccinated in the city are from the suburbs and surrounding states.

   “We don’t begrudge them that,” said the mayor, who described many of the out-of-towners coming in to get vaccines as “people who serve us in the city.”

  “But,” the mayor said, “our allocation should be bigger to account for that.”

   While the state sends New York City 45% of New York’s allocation of vaccine, Mayor de Blasio said that the city is “actually vaccinating more like 53% of the folks getting vaccinated in the state.”

   The mega-vaccination sites play a great role in the vaccination process, but the mayor said that he would like to continue to expand “more of a grassroots focus in the areas that were hardest hit.”

   Finally, the mayor asked, “Where are the vaccination companies? Except for the three [Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson] involved in vaccines, why are the other pharmaceutical companies not stepping forward, offering their assembly lines [to produce more vaccine]?”

 Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office


Alternate Side Parking Rules Suspended February 18-20
  • Feb 17 2021
  • |
  • 2:06 PM

Yeshivas Eish Hatalmid Visit Rebbes of Skulen and Sanz Zvehill
  • Feb 17 2021
  • |
  • 9:27 AM

Be in the know

receive BoroPark24’s news & updates on whatsapp

 Start Now