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Goodbye Appointments! All NYC-Run COVID Vaccine Sites Now Accept Walk-Ins For Everyone
By
Jen Chung
Published Apr 23, 2021
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NYC Mayor's office
By
Jen Chung
Published Apr 23, 2021
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Mayor Bill de Blasio is opening up its city-run vaccination sites to all New York adults no matter where they live—and people can just walk up for their jabs. He announced the pivot away from geographic restrictions and appointments at his daily press briefing from City Hall.
The changes go into effect immediately and apply to all city-run hubs, including Health+Hospitals locations and the new site at the American Museum of Natural History under the giant blue whale, which opened today.
As motivation for the switch, the mayor and the city's health officials cited the success with a walk-up pilot for New Yorkers older than 50 that started April 17th. De Blasio also linked increasing vaccinations to improvements in COVID-19 indicators for the city, like the drop in hospitalizations.
"We did not have the kinds of lines we were worried about that might be a problem, so we are quite confident we can accommodate a much higher volume of walk-ins," de Blasio explained. He added that he would like all federal community centers to be opened up to walk-ins. Some federally-run, large-scale sites are expected to close around the country due to dropping demand.
Read More: How To Score A COVID-19 Vaccine In NY
Over 6 million doses have been administered in New York City, so far, with more than 4.2 million given through the city's programs. About 2.1 million NYC residents are fully vaccinated as of April 23rd.
You can find city-run sites at nyc.gov/vaccinefinder. State-controlled locations, like the Javits Center, Yankee Stadium, York College, Medgar Evers College and Aqueduct Race Track, are also open for walk-in appointments for New Yorkers over 60.
"Convenience matters to New Yorkers," the mayor said. "We want to make it simple for folks."
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COVID-19
pandemic
coronavirus
new york city
bill de blasio
vaccine
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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