Mayor Bill de Blasio said Wednesday a delay in COVID-19 vaccines due to winter storms is preventing the city from liberating New York. The mayor said the city would have to “hold back” about 30,000 to 35,000 appointments that would otherwise be opened for schedules because “the vaccine has not arrived.”
“It’s obviously a national problem that happens with the weather, it’s gluing up supply lines across the country,” de Blasio said, noting that although he was not sure where the vaccines were stuck, expected a winter storm in the coming days. “What I do know is that our vaccines are being delayed, which is really frustrating” for the thousands waiting for appointments.
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De Blasio, who set a goal to fully vaccinate 5 million New Yorkers by June, said storms aside the city would need a lot more support to reach the milestone. He called on the federal government to grant vaccines directly to the city, as opposed to the state’s approval which ‘slows things down in many ways’.
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“We do not need any direct supply,” he said, adding that the city also vaccinates workers from the suburbs or neighboring states. “Our allocation must be greater to be able to account for it.”
He also noted during the press conference an overhaul of the city’s vaccination website that was criticized for the complexity during the initial implementation.
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According to the latest data provided by the city, more than 1.3 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered. According to its data, the city has so far received more than 1.7 million doses. The city also counted more than 675,000 cases of COVID-19 and 28,428 deaths.