More than 93K New Yorkers got a COVID vaccine Thursday

QUEENS BOULEVARD EXTENDED CARE FACILITY ADMINISTRATOR DR. JONATHAN MAWERE RECEIVED HIS FIRST DOSE OF THE COVID-19 VACCINE AT THE WOODSIDE NURSING HOME in DECEMBER. Millions of shots have been delivered in the three months since then. EAGLE PHOTO BY DAVID BRAND

By David Brand

It’s a new record: More than 93,000 COVID-19 vaccines were administered in New York City on Thursday, Mayor Bill de Blasio said. 

De Blasio delivered the refreshing news during his weekly appearance on the Brian Lehrer Show Friday. 

“That's the most by far that's been achieved in a single day,” he said. “Very good sign for the future.” 

De Blasio also said that 65,000 Department of Education employees have been vaccinated. That’s about 60 percent of the total DOE workforce of 110,000.

More than 4.2 million COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in New York City since the very first dose in December, according to city Health Department data.

New York City’s seven-day COVID test positivity rate was at 6.72 percent as of March 31, the most recent data available. That rate has remained relatively static for the past two weeks. The rate in Queens was about 8 percent.

De Blasio said accelerating the rollout was essential for avoiding yet another surge of the illness, particularly as new, more infectious variants spread.

“We really can outrace the variants if we keep expanding the number of vaccinations,” he said.