PAINFUL DOSE OF CUOMO & BLAS

The only quick ‘shots’ are those exchanged by bickering duo

People in New York are dying every day amid the agonizingly slow rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, so what do Gov. Cuomo and Mayor de Blasio do? Tear into each other, of course.

Cuomo sparked the bitter rivals’ latest war of words on Monday when he pinned the slow launch on local leaders, including de Blasio — threatening that municipalities and public hospitals that don’t quickly use their allotted vaccines may be fined and barred from future shipments.

De Blasio responded by blasting Cuomo, saying the governor should be “trusting the people who have been our heroes” instead of “threatening” them.

Speaking at an Albany press briefing, the governor said, “We need the public officials to manage those public hospitals,” arguing that distribution points, including the Big Apple’s city-run NYC Health + Hospitals system, have dropped the ball.

Cuomo underscored the dig using a PowerPoint slide with photos of local leaders — de Blasio among them — and the all-caps stamp “MUST MANAGE.”

Also included was SUNY head and former top Cuomo aide Jim Malatras, who oversees other state public hospitals — and was in the room when the governor riffed off the slide.

“I need them to take personal responsibility for their hospitals,” he said. “They have to move the vaccine, and they have to move the vaccine faster.”

To light a fire under distributors, the state Health Department sent a letter Sunday with a use-itor-lose-it proposition, Cuomo said. Providers must use the doses they’ve been allocated by week’s end or face fines of up to $100,000.

Going forward, they must use all vaccines within seven days of receipt or face fines — and being cut off from future shipments.

The mayor, appearing on NY1 Monday night, accused the governor of “arrogance,” claiming he was turning his back on healthcare workers.

“Does he think that our healthcare professionals are uninterested in vaccinating people? How about trusting the people who have been our heroes?” de Blasio said.

“Help them, support them. Don’t fine them, don’t threaten them. Respect them and help them.”

De Blasio said that instead of issuing threats, the state should implement new regulations to en

courage faster vaccine delivery.

“We need rules that maximize the pace, that help us speed up and reach the people who are available, who are a priority and who are ready, willing and able, it’s common sense,” the mayor said. “So, the state can help us here. Stop threatening people.”

Public and private hospitals statewide have used only about 46 percent of the vaccines they have been provided, according to stats Cuomo cited Monday.

While the private NewYorkPresbyterian Healthcare System has led the way, with about 99 percent of its allotted shots administered, the public Health + Hospitals network has used just 31 percent.

“I need those public officials to step in and manage those systems,” Cuomo said. “You have the allocation. We want it in people’s arms as soon as possible.”

State Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker, speaking during the same press briefing, said Health + Hospitals hasn’t fared well even in vaccinating its own employees.

Of the system’s 23,000 employees eligible to receive the vaccine, only 12,000 have gotten a shot — despite the system being given 38,000 doses, according to Zucker.

“Those other 11,000 employees need to get vaccinated,” he said. “There needs to be a sense of urgency.”

While Cuomo called on local leaders to inoculate the “1A” list of recipients, his aide-turned-vaccination-czar, Larry Schwartz, previously said that the state is still sorting out what “1B” will be.

“We haven’t talked to them [de Blasio’s team] about 1B because we’re working on what the 1B allocation is going to look like,” he told The Post last week, adding that point is still “weeks away.”

Earlier Monday, the mayor vowed again to vaccinate 1 million city residents in January and said it is time for the inoculation effort to break into a “sprint” after a painfully slow first three weeks.

Hizzoner said that the city aims to use 100,000 vaccines this week, building to a clip of 400,000 weekly by month’s end.

Starting Monday, the following personnel were eligible for shots: testing-site workers, contact tracers, outpatient- and ambulatorycare providers, dentists, physical therapists, workers at specialized clinics and NYPD medical staff.

“From this week on, I expect these numbers to increase intensely,” de Blasio said, calling for ’round-the-clock distribution points to meet the million-shot mark.

“The groundwork is laid. Now it’s time to put this into action on a 24/7 basis.”

Nonstop vaccination centers were among the ideas pitched Sunday by two would-be successors to de Blasio:, Comptroller Scott Stringer and Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams.

City Councilman Mark Levine (D-Manhattan) also demanded 24/7 vaccination centers.

“We are way behind,” Levine told The Post on Monday. “This is a warlike situation and we have to respond with the appropriate level of intensity.”

To help reach the goal, de Blasio said that everyone needs to pitch in, including the state.

“We need flexibility from the state of New York, we need support from the federal government,” he said. “We need the federal government to simplify the rules and to join us in making things move quicker.”