- By Steve Bittenbender | The Center Square, Jan 15, 2021
(The Center Square) – Facing mounting criticism about the state’s COVID-19 vaccination distribution program, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the federal government has bungled the entire process.
After being told by Washington the state would get 300,000 doses weekly, Cuomo said the state received only 250,000 last week. But that happened as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention expanded the groups eligible to start receiving the vaccine.
Last week, Cuomo said there were 7 million New Yorkers eligible for vaccinations. On Friday, after federal officials provided definitions for younger adults with preexisting conditions to qualify, Cuomo said that in-state number shot up to about 12 million.
At this point, Cuomo quipped it would be easier to report a list of people not eligible to receive a vaccine. He equated the issue to opening of floodgates.
“And that entire flood has to go through a syringe,” Cuomo said “All this volume, and it has to go through the point of a needle, literally and figuratively. That’s the situation that the federal government created.”
State Republican officials, though, say that the governor bears some blame for the situation as well.
State GOP Chairman Nick Langworthy called the distribution system an outrage.
“Every day that goes by, there is a new horrifying development of mismanagement and incompetence, which is hardly a surprise given the governor and his taxpayer-funded staff are spending all their time giving speeches and tweeting political attacks,” Langworthy said. “‘Blame Me, Blame Me,’ cried Cuomo as he took total control. Well, we do. This is a crisis of unprecedented proportions and it needs to be fixed immediately before another New Yorker unnecessarily loses their life at the hands of his incompetence.”
- Six-Unit Apartment Building Planned for 10th Street in Astoria
- Tuesday’s PSD blotter: noise calls, a harassment report
- Queens Public Library Ransomware Attack: Digital Services Still Disrupted
- A new RIOC appeals officer denied records on how its general counsel was hired
- Monday’s PSD blotter: two hospital transports, two disputes
New Yorkers on Twitter have complained about the state’s vaccination registration website. They say it crashes or times out repeatedly as they try to get an appointment for themselves or their loved ones.
In one bit of positive news, Cuomo said the vaccination rate for nursing homes across the state has reached 96 percent and should be completed by Sunday. The state participated in the federal rollout program in those long-term care facilities, but earlier this month, Cuomo said the state had to add personnel to the pharmacies contracted by Washington to administer those doses.
Latest from the Roosevelt Island Daily News
A new RIOC appeals officer denied records on how its general counsel was hired
A different RIOC appeals officer denied records on how RIOC hired general counsel Lance Polivy. RIOC’s internal deliberations on the hire stay withheld.
Monday’s PSD blotter: two hospital transports, two disputes
RIOC’s Nov. 9 PSD blotter lists 14 incidents, including four aided calls with two hospital transports and a verbal dispute at 750 Main Street that drew FDNY.
Flushing Spa Murder: Man Charged After Woman Found Stabbed to Death
Flushing spa murder investigation leads to a murder charge against a 54-year-old man after a woman was found fatally stabbed in a Queens storefront.
Unequal Bargains
On June 18, the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation’s Real Estate Development Advisory Committee gathered to discuss ground leases, the master retail lease, and the ten additional years being offered under the Island’s master lease. Howard L. Polivy, the committee’s chair, opened the meeting as a longtime host shows guests through a familiar house, pointing out the furniture as if it had never moved an inch.
