Source: US State of New York
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced additional efforts to expand access to community-based vaccination sites at Medgar Evers College in Brooklyn and York College in Queens being established through a partnership with the Federal Emergency Management Agency. As part of this effort, the MTA will launch a pilot program to enhance bus service in Brooklyn and Queens to connect New Yorkersin these boroughs to the two vaccination sites. The state will also partner with faith leaders in Brooklyn and Queens to launch a vaccination drive aimed at encouraging more members of the leaders’ communities to sign up for vaccination appointments at these sites using phone banking. These new initiatives are part of New York State’s ongoing efforts to fight vaccine hesitancy and bring the vaccine to communities underserved by traditional health care institutions.
We stand together in expressing serious concern with the Trump administration s vaccine distribution plan. While we are encouraged by recent reports regarding the vaccines efficacy, there is urgent work to be done to ensure vaccination efforts are both expeditious and fair.
Governors need federal funding in order to execute comprehensive distribution plans to guarantee that all communities have access to the vaccine. The Association of State and Territorial Health Officials estimates that a comprehensive vaccine distribution program would cost approximately $8 billion. To date, the Trump Administration has administered a mere $200 million to the states.
Without adequate funding, distribution will not be equitable. COVID-19 has laid bare chronic health disparities in our country that led communities of color to suffer disproportionately from this virus. Communities of color disproportionately suffer from pre-existing conditions, such as asthma, obesity and hyp