Coronavirus Mass Vax Sites Deluged By Non-NYC Residents: Mayor

NEW YORK CITY — An influx of out-of-towners into New York City's mass coronavirus vaccination sites shows more focus needs to be directed toward getting shots to city dwellers, Mayor Bill de Blasio said.

More than 42 percent of people getting COVID-19 vaccine at the Javits Center are non-city residents, de Blasio said Monday. The proportion is even higher — 75 percent — at Aqueduct Racetracks in Queens, he said.

De Blasio said he wanted to see everyone in the suburbs and tri-state area to get vaccinated.

"I want to see that happen, but I want to be clear that in terms of New York City these sites do not perform what we hope to see, which was more and more focus on equity," he said.

Hizzoner's sharp focus on potential disparities formed not only a call for more "grassroots" vaccination efforts, but also salt in the growing political wounds for de Blasio's frequent rival — Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

Cuomo has made numerous pledges to ensure Black, Brown, low-income and other hard-hit New Yorkers get access to the coronavirus vaccine.

But by claiming the state sites exacerbate disparities, de Blasio landed added that to the nursing home and sexual harassment controversies Cuomo faces.

Bill Neidhardt, a de Blasio spokesperson, was more blunt.

"NYC isn't getting our fair share," Neidhardt wrote in a tweet. "That just isn't acceptable."

Some lawmakers recently pressed city and state officials to open a mass-vaccination site in Manhattan, the only one of New York's five boroughs that lacks a site serving its residents exclusively.

"We desperately need one. Other boroughs have them," State Sen. Brad Hoylman told state Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker during hearing last week, saying some senior citizens had been unable to book appointments at Javits.

De Blasio on Monday appeared to leave open the chance for more focused sites. He said future hubs should follow the approach of a church in Harlem focused on its surrounding neighborhood and mass sites like Yankee Stadium and Citi Field that exclusively serve their boroughs or certain sets of New Yorkers.