To nix masks, get vax: Blaz
Now there’s a question with a premise Mayor de Blasio can agree on.
When asked Thursday if the city should consider using the lure of ditching masks as an incentive for vaccine-hesitant New Yorkers to go ahead and get their COVID shots, de Blasio wholeheartedly embraced the idea Thursday, saying that “the best way to know we’re out of the woods is to see those vaccination numbers go up and up and up.”
The mayor, who’s known among City Hall reporters for regularly disagreeing with the premise of their questions, agreed that the prospect of shedding masks should be used as a carrot, but said he’s not considering issuing such a mask-ditching decree until June at the earliest.
“I think that’s a really good point,” de Blasio told CBS reporter and former Daily News scribe Marcia Kramer on Thursday after she asked about the merits of such a tactic. “I think you’re right — that one of the things we can say to people is, if you want to get rid of the masks, if you want to get rid of the social distancing, if you want to get rid of the restrictions — go get vaccinated.”
But Hizzoner added that he wants the city to “hold the line” on mask-wearing through June and stressed that unvaccinated New Yorkers should sign up to get the jab as soon as possible.
So far, 5.9 million COVID vaccine doses have been administered in the city, but not all those who’ve received doses live in the five boroughs and not all of those who live in the city have been fully vaccinated.
De Blasio has set the goal of having 5 million city residents fully vaccinated by the end of June.
“We want to hold the line through June,” he said. “We’ll keep, you know, the masks on, and we’ll do all the things we need to do. After that, we’ll be able to reassess.”
The tease that the city could relax mask-wearing comes as the city’s rate of COVID infections continues to drop. The citywide positivity rate averaged over seven days hit 4.54% on Thursday — the lowest it’s been since last November.