Out-of-towners dominate doses at Queens' Aqueduct vaccine site
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A medical worker prepares a COVID vaccine dose at Aqueduct Race Track in South Ozone Park. Photo courtesy of Aqueduct
By David Brand
And down the stretch they come — from Long Island.
Out-of-towners dominate appointments at a state-run COVID-19 vaccine clinic inside Aqueduct Racetrack, Mayor Bill de Blasio said Monday. New York City residents account for just a quarter of the doses administered at the South Ozone Park facility, he said.
The other 75 percent of life-saving shots are going to non-city residents, de Blasio said as he slammed the state vaccine rollout at large-scale sites in New York City.
“Unless they are targeted properly, these big sites do not actually help us improve equity and fight disparity,” he said. “Unless they're targeted properly, they could exacerbate disparity and the numbers we have now from the big state-run sites.”
Neighborhoods near Aqueduct, including South Ozone Park, Ozone Park and Richmond Hill, account for some of the highest rates of COVID-19 in New York City, with each at a seven-day positivity rate above 10 percent, according to the city Health Department data.
Meanwhile, the vaccination rate is just 5 percent in zip code 11420, home to Aqueduct.
“I want everyone to get vaccinated. I want everyone in the Tri-State Area to get vaccinated. Everyone in the suburbs to get vaccinated … 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 focused on equity,” de Blasio said.
Aqueduct’s large parking lot and proximity to Nassau County make the site attractive to residents of Long Island who can qualify for vaccines there.
The appointment outlook is better for New York City residents at another state-run site at the Javits Center in Manhattan, where people from the five boroughs account for about 58 percent of vaccine doses, he said.
De Blasio contrasted the two sites to a city-run clinic at Citi Field, where, after weeks of delays, healthcare workers began administering vaccines to Queens residents, food service workers and taxi drivers last month. Another state facility located at York College opened late last month with all appointments reserved for Queens residents.
De Blasio and Health Commissioner Dr. Dave Chokshi said the issue of out-of-towners booking so many vaccine appointments highlights the need for more “grassroots” and small-scale vaccine sites around the city
Early reporting showed that many out-of-towners who received their vaccines in New York City work in the five boroughs.
A spokesperson for Gov. Andrew Cuomo cited that data in a statement to the Eagle.
“Once again, the Mayor’s argument doesn’t make sense — these sites are vaccinating thousands of New Yorkers per day, including essential workers who might live outside the five boroughs but serve New York City,” said spokesperson Jack Sterne.
“We are unsure why Mayor de Blasio is against vaccinating teachers who educate New York City children; firefighters, EMTs, nurses, police officers, and doctors who protect New York City residents; and transit workers who keep our subways and buses moving, just because they live in a different county,” he added. “Our focus is on getting shots into arms as fast as possible, and we won’t let the Mayor’s petty politics distract from that goal.”
