The Peru Gazette

Starting tomorrow, with FEMA’s partnership, New York State will be opening scheduling for two new community-based vaccination sites with four more to follow in the next week. Scheduling for the first two of these sites, in Queens and Brooklyn, begins tomorrow at 8am for eligible New Yorkers in qualifying ZIP codes. These two sites each have the capacity and the supply to administer 3,000 vaccinations a day. The four additional community-based mass vaccination sites in Buffalo, Rochester, Yonkers and Albany will come online on March 3, with scheduling opening on Wednesday, February 24. These sites will also be restricted to eligible residents in qualifying ZIP codes. After one week, appointments at each site will then be made available to all residents of the site’s county, borough or target area.

With these new sites, New York is working to ensure that no community is left behind in the vaccination process by focusing on neighborhoods with lower vaccination rates. As scheduling for the sites opens, New Yorkers should check their eligibility and, if eligible, schedule an appointment through the Am I Eligible Tool or by calling the COVID-19 Vaccine Hotline at 1-833-697-4829. With the opening of these sites, we will be making a dramatic impact on some of our hardest-hit communities with thousands of shots in arms. I thank the federal government for its partnership in making these locations a reality.

Photo of the Day: A member of the NY National Guard stands in front of the Wall of Thanks at the Javits Center vaccination site (Photo courtesy The Javits Center)

1. The Department of Health will allow nursing home visitations in accordance with CDC guidance. The Department of Health recommends that visitors take a rapid test before entry into the facility, and DOH will provide rapid tests to nursing homes at no cost. Guidance on visitations will be available beginning Monday, February 22.

2. COVID hospitalizations dropped to 6,155. Of the 249,248 tests reported yesterday, 8,710, or 3.49 percent, were positive. There were 1,199 patients in ICU yesterday, down 59 from the previous day. Of them, 834 are intubated. Sadly, we lost 116 New Yorkers to the virus.

3. New York launched the New York Forward Rapid Test Program to help accelerate a safe economic recovery. This unique public-private partnership will make low-cost rapid testing available to the public to support enhanced economic activity as the State continues to reopen sectors of the economy. Eleven initial sites will open today in New York City with the capacity to conduct more than 5,000 tests per day, while additional sites are scheduled to open in New York City and other parts of the state in the coming weeks. Learn more.

4. As of 11am this morning, 92 percent of first doses allocated to the state have been administered. This represents 2,147,076 first doses administered of the 2,335,250 first dose allocations received from the federal government. So far, 1,033,367 second doses have been administered out of the 1,284,300 second doses received. So far, 12.1 percent of New Yorkers have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. See data by region on the State’s Vaccine Tracker: ny.gov/vaccinetracker.

5. New York City indoor dining will expand to 35 percent capacity next week. The new reopening guidance goes into effect Friday, February 26, and aligns with New Jersey’s 35 percent limit.

Tonight’s “Deep Breath Moment”: This Lunar New Year, Port Washington, NY used the holiday’s traditional red lanterns to raise money for those affected by the pandemic. Community members participated in the fundraiser by sponsoring red lanterns hung at Sunset Park. The donated funds go toward gift cards at local restaurants that are then given to help families in need. Organizer Jill Carvajal was inspired by similar lantern displays in Chinatown. With the help of her friend Diane Livingston and Bin Hu Laurence, they made it happen in Port Washington. The lanterns will stay up through the end of February and so far, the project has raised more than $23,000.

Ever Upward,

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo