New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio is pushing for city adults over 75 to be given priority vaccination against Covid-19 amid worsening trends in that age group.
Eligibility for vaccination is ultimately approved by government officials. The state currently has a five-stage priority vaccination plan. The first two phases give priority to health professionals and patients in long-term care facilities and other key staff. Adults over 65 fall under phase 3 of the plan.
The mayor has said he hopes to begin pre-registering seniors with some of the available vaccination centers in the city.
New York Health Commissioner Dave Chokshi explained that in the past 30 days, 6% of all cases are older than 75 years and over, but 30% of hospital admissions and 58% of deaths are in those 75 and older. The percentage of positivity also increases in this category.
“I believe New Yorkers 75 and older should be eligible for the vaccine as soon as possible,” Chokshi said, adding that “several states have already prioritized older adults.”
In total, New York City reported a further 3,845 cases on an average of seven days, which de Blasio said was “way too high.” The city also recorded a “big jump” in patients admitted to hospitals with a suspicion of Covid-19, with the mayor flagging 279 in Wednesday’s report.
De Blasio said he hoped the impact of the holiday break would diminish in the coming weeks, leading to an improvement in the Covid-19 numbers.
New York City was the US epicenter of the Covid-19 pandemic in March, with hospitals struggling to cope with the influx of patients.
After an easier summer, the city is now experiencing an increasing number of infections and new restrictions have been imposed.