CITY CANCELS SHOTS
Lack of vaccine nixes 23,000 appointments
New York’s COVID vaccine supply will run out in a matter of days and efforts to inoculate the public will have to be assessed on a “week-to-week” basis, Gov. Cuomo warned Wednesday.
The shortages also forced New York City to reschedule 23,000 inoculation appointments this week, prompting Mayor de Blasio to renew calls for the federal government to trigger the Defense Production Act, which would expedite the supply of materials needed to boost the inventory of much-needed vaccines.
De Blasio and Cuomo have been criticizing the feds’ slow vaccine output for weeks now, with the mayor repeatedly predicting the city would run out of doses before week’s end.
“We need the supply expanded in a huge way,” the mayor said at a morning news briefing.
The governor, venting frustration over the federal government’s vaccine rollout and overall response to the pandemic, said the Empire State is currently administering about 65,000 doses a day.
With only 145,780 first doses remaining statewide, New York will run out of vaccine within two to three days, Cuomo said during a separate briefing in Albany.
“You will see a constant pattern of basically running out, waiting for the next week’s allocation and then starting up again,” he said. “We’re trying to smooth it out, but we’re also trying to get it out as fast as possible.
“That’s where we are now. It’s going to be a week-to-week allocation situation,” he added.
Based on the current distribution levels from the feds, the governor predicted it could take up to eight months to vaccinate eligible hospital workers, first responders and those older than 65.
In all, New York has administered 84% of more than 1.1 million total vaccine doses it has received so far, according to the state’s online vaccine dashboard.
Cuomo said the state now has more than 1,200 distribution sites ready to dole out doses, but is encouraging them not to schedule appointments without knowing their allocation.
To prolong the city’s ability to keep giving shots, de Blasio also called on the new Biden administration and the state government to allow the city to repurpose doses of the vaccine intended as a second shot to be used as first doses.
According to de Blasio, about 65,000 second doses are now being held in reserve.
“If we had those second doses freed up, we could reach those 23,000 New Yorkers this week,” he said. “We’ve got about 65,000 doses that we could put into play right away if we had that freedom.”
Despite laying blame for the backlog on the federal government, Cuomo said he is hopeful things will change under President Biden, who was sworn into office hours earlier. The governor also said he expects more shots to be made available to states if manufacturers such as Pfizer and Moderna are instructed to increase production by the new administration.
Cuomo said his attempt earlier in the week to deal directly with pharmaceutical giant Pfizer was no longer an option since such a move would need federal approval.
“So states can’t buy, private individuals can’t buy,” he lamented.
State officials have said they want pharmacies to focus on vaccinating older New Yorkers, while local governments should prioritize essential workers and hospitals should continue to aim at getting all health care workers immunized. Cuomo said he still wants to ensure that the vaccines are distributed fairly and equitably.
The governor also cautioned that “it is just a matter of time” before a new, more lethal strain emerges in the U.S., adding that, like the flu, COVID mutations could mean annual vaccinations against seasonal variants.
The frightening prospect of a highly contagious variant spreading before vaccines are widely available could wreak havoc on hospitals. Currently, there are 9,273 people being treated for the virus in hospitals across the state.
Of 195,409 test results reported to the state on Tuesday, 13,364, or 6.84%, came back positive.
Another 185 New Yorkers died of COVID on Tuesday, according to the governor.