Westchester Insider: Westchester County Legislator Kitley Covill 2nd District: Week 11: Vaccine Update.

 

Dear Neighbors and Friends,

As we enter the 11^th week of the COVID vaccination program, there is encouraging news to report. In Westchester, 110,000 residents have already received vaccines, and the numbers of active cases, hospitalizations and fatalities are all down significantly from where they were a month ago. This week, another large-scale vaccination site at the New York National Guard Armory in Yonkers will open its doors. Run by New York State in cooperation with FEMA, the new site will begin scheduling appointments Wednesday, February 24.  It is our understanding that this site will, for the first week of its operation, cater entirely to residents of Yonkers and Mount Vernon in the following zip codes: 10701, 10703, 10704, 10705, 10550, 10552, 10553. Following the first week of operation, vaccines will be available to all residents of Westchester County who make an appointment. Appointments can be made through the New York State vaccine homepage, available here: https://covid19vaccine.health.ny.gov/ Alternatively, residents can call the State at 1-833-697-4829.

Westchester County is consulting with schools to ensure that openings are conducted safely and is offering vaccinations for teachers and other school staff, in coordination with NYSUT.  Once the County receives more doses it will have more appointments to vaccinate staff. Unfortunately, as many of you know, shipments were delayed due to the recent winter weather. In addition there were some emails sent by NYS indicating that appointments were still on even though local weather conditions forced some locations to close.  Hopefully with better weather in front of us there will be no more cancellations of that type.  Please note that pharmacies are only permitted to give vaccines to people 65 and older. 

New guidance just came out regarding indoor dining, indoor events and weddings. I suggest you check the NYS website for specifics, but in summary occupancy of in-person and catered events is limited to the lesser of: 50% for a particular area as set by the certificate of occupancy, or 150 people, exclusive of employees and event staff.  There are rules about notifying the Department of Health and getting a negative test within 72 hours of the event as well as guidelines about live music etc.  These types of rules are fluid and changing but going in the direction of normalcy, and I am sure any venue will be attuned to future changes.   

For a list of the Westchester County Vaccine Allocation for Week 11, please check here: https://www.westchestergov.com/home/all-press-releases/8828-westchester-county-vaccine-allocation-week-11  We have been told that there will be more NYS run pop up sites as the allocations of doses to Westchester County increases. 

Finally, on a somber note, Westchester County is conducting a ceremony in recognition of those lost over the last year from COVID-19. This commemoration will occur on March 3rd, beginning at 11:00am. The event can be viewed through the County’s Facebook page, available here: https://www.facebook.com/westchestergov

Please continue to stay safe and well as we move forward to vaccinations for everyone.

Very truly yours,

Kitley S. Covill