Vaccine seekers against COVID-19 rushed across the city and state to attack Washington Heights on Wednesday in search of the shot, including a couple who were taken away in a limousine.
Upper Manhattan’s Fort Washington Armory, transformed into an inoculation site by a nearby Newbyork-Presbyterian Hospital location, remained one of the few vaccination sites in the city still operating this week despite the shortage. widespread of features.
But, as reported by The City on Tuesday, many of those who showed up for the laundry came from outside the affected neighborhood, and at the time the site lacked Spanish-speaking staff to help much of the Hispanic locals.
Although The Post met with Spanish-speaking workers on Wednesday, the old trend persisted.
“We’re relieved,” said Carol, an elderly woman who traveled with her husband from the Upper East Side to be punctured. “It’s been two months since we tried to get an appointment. It’s crazy.”
Carol, who refused to give her last name, and her husband, who did not want to identify himself, were picked up after an appointment with a black Cadillac limousine, her driver waiting with her little dog in the trailer.
“We have to fight for it,” Carol’s husband said laughing, when asked if he felt the vaccine was distributed fairly.
Following outrage over news from outsiders coming to haunt, NewYork-Presbyterian announced Wednesday afternoon that appointments at the site would only go to New York City residents and that a minimum of 60% would be reserved for to residents of Washington Heights, Inwood, north. and Central Harlem and South Bronx. All existing appointments will be respected.
Earlier in the day, Min Ye had driven about three hours down from Schoharie County, to ensure that his mother, 78, and father, 80, could be vaccinated after getting an online appointment the day before.
He explained that his parents have an apartment in midtown Manhattan, but that they have temporarily been living with his American side.
“They have simply been living in the northern part of the state. They still have their apartment, ”he said. “We feel that we are also part of this community.”
Judy Stevens, 76, defended traveling from the Upper West Side for her vaccine, saying Big Apple is a great community.
“This is New York City and, to me, you give it to everyone who needs it. People here can get into the computer like everyone else, ”said Stevens, whose daughter made an appointment at the hospital Wednesday. “We are all in one place, but we are not divided. We are all in New York City. We are all residents. “
Erica Smith took her 88-year-old mother, who has a pacemaker, for a vaccine.
“I told them about my mother’s heart condition and they told me to take her well,” Smith said, referring to the hospital workers.
Smith, who along with his mother lives in Washington Heights, said he has no problem with outsiders coming to play.
“It’s a health situation, why do you want to help only the people who get into it [your] neighborhood? She asked.
The mayor, however, exploded the practice during a press session on Wednesday morning.
“I’m very concerned about what I’m feeling,” de Blasio said. “Here you have a place in the middle of an incredibly affected neighborhood, a community largely of immigrants, a Latino community that was one of the places that suffered the brunt of the COVID crisis.
“I want to see Columbia Presbyterian do my best to reach out to the surrounding community,” he continued. “It simply came to our notice then. That should be the focus of this center, period. There are many periods that want the vaccine in the community. “
Hizzoner went on to say that the vaccination effort cannot be seen as favoring more “privileged” people than others.
“The whole idea of a successful vaccination has to be community-based,” he said. “And people in the community have to see that these places are really for them, and somehow they are not left out of the places in their own community. Therefore, it needs to be fixed immediately.”
Across the city, de Blasio acknowledged that both public and private hospitals could do a better job of ensuring that procedures and appointments related to the vaccination process are available in languages beyond English and English. Spanish.
“It’s a huge and extensive effort, but we need to make sure it’s as inclusive as possible,” de Blasio said, insisting on whether the city could force private facilities to offer materials in other languages that are commonly spoken. throughout the city, including Chinese, French, Creole and Russian.
“It looks like none of them are safe,” de Blasio said, as his request that the three city medical experts weigh in on the city was met with a long silence. “If we do not have the capacity to order it, we must ensure ourselves very aggressively [that it’s implemented]”.
When Hizzoner turned to doctors for answers on forms at city-run public hospitals, there was a pregnant pause.
“You have to give credit where you have to pay. When The New York Post is right, they are right, ”said de Blasio. “The real forms to register for the appointments must be in languages other than English and Spanish, if we really want to maximize access. Therefore, we will work to solve it.
The lack of translations is not the first time the city’s vaccination effort has been criticized for accessibility issues.
Older citizens have analyzed the city’s complicated online registration system to freeze them, even though they are among the most vulnerable to coronavirus.
In a statement, New York-Presbyterian said: “A permanent engagement initiative focuses on reaching eligible residents in northern Manhattan and having them register for appointments. This process is being conducted in collaboration. with more than 40 community and faith-based organizations and other partners, and focuses on providing access, overcoming hesitation, and addressing persistent inequalities. “