In A Milestone, NYC Passes 8M Coronavirus Vaccine Doses

NEW YORK CITY — New York City passed 8 million doses of coronavirus vaccine that went into arms since a massive — and continuing — inoculation effort began.

Mayor Bill de Blasio on Wednesday announced the milestone and credited it with falling coronavirus rates across the city.

"This is why COVID keeps being reduced and reduced and reduced in New York City," he said.

The city's average positivity stood at 1.08 percent as of Wednesday, de Blasio said.

The rate hasn't been that low since Sept. 10, according to city data.

"Let’s get that below 1 percent,” de Blasio said.

Vaccinations against COVID-19 began in December and, after a slow start, ramped up significantly in the spring. About 61 percent of all adults in the city have received at least one dose of vaccine, data shows.

And recent expanded access to New Yorkers who are between 12 and 15 has shown promising signs, Dave Chokshi, the city's health commissioner said.

About 50,000 children that age have received vaccine doses so far, he said.

But the rate of vaccinations has fallen in recent weeks, prompting officials to offer incentives to entice hesitant or skeptical New Yorkers to get the vaccine.

De Blasio said a combination of outreach efforts and incentives have helped keep vaccinations going.

"What works?" he said. "What works is taking it to the streets, going out into communities, the mobile vaccination sites, the buses, the vans, the pop-up sites in public housing and houses of worship. All of these things have worked."