ALBANY, N.Y. — New York Governor Andrew Cuomo provided an update Wednesday afternoon regarding the state's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
During a press conference held in Albany, the governor said New York State is conducting three COVID operations simultaneously: managing hospitals, slowing the spread of COVID-19, and the COVID-19 vaccine.
Cuomo says there is a hospital capacity crisis, adding that he sent a letter to all hospital administrators across the state, discussing the situation and what they're going to need to do.
"They're going to have to be extraordinarily flexible and nimble to handle the additional caseload that is coming up," Cuomo said.
As for the vaccine, Cuomo says it's the "weapon that will win the war."
The governor went into further detail about the vaccine, saying the Pfizer vaccine is expected to be approved by the FDA on Thursday, and the New York State panel will then convene and immediately review.
If approved, the governor says about 6 million doses will be available nationwide. Cuomo says half will ship immediately, while the other half will be shipped 21 days later so those who received the first vaccine can get the second dose.
According to the governor, the federal government is going to be in charge of procuring the vaccine, while the U.S. military will be in charge of transportation.
If the vaccine is approved on Thursday, New York State expects to receive an initial allocation of 170,000 doses as soon as this weekend, with further allocations coming in the following weeks.
Governor Cuomo says New York State will prioritize nursing home residents, nursing home staff, and high-risk hospital workers. The governor says New York State has established rules, which prioritize patient-facing hospital workers as high-risk, such as emergency room workers, ICU staff and pulmonary department staff. However, each hospital will select the individuals who will receive the vaccine.
Cuomo also provided an estimated allocation of vaccines by region, saying the Western New York region is expected to receive about 14,500 doses. The governor says this number is based on the number of nursing home residents and staff, as well as the number of high-risk healthcare workers.
New York has set up 90 regional distribution centers across the state that are capable of cold storage, which will be able to keep the vaccine at the required temperature. Each will receive enough doses for about 90,000 patient-facing hospital staff. The governor says this is about 40 percent of the total hospital patient-facing workforce.
Cuomo further stated that staff at every hospital in New York State, regardless of the storage capabilities, will have access to the first allocation of the vaccine. The governor added that if the current schedule holds true, by the end of the second week, New York State expects all high-risk staff will receive a vaccine.
After all high-risk health care workers are vaccinated, Cuomo says the state will then move on to all long-term and congregate care staff and residents, then EMS and other health care workers. From there, essential workers and the general population will receive the vaccinations, starting with those who are considered high-risk.
Cuomo says New York State has opted into the federal program where employees from CVS and Walgreens will vaccinate nursing home residents and staff in the facilities, much like they do for the flu vaccine.
Cuomo says New York is dedicating part of its initial allocation of the vaccine to this program, which is expected to be enough to cover all residents and staff. The governor says the state expects deliveries for this program to start arriving next week, and for the federal administration program to begin by December 21.
The governor also said the state will take measures in an attempt to ensure poor communities and people of color are given access to the vaccine. The federal government left such decisions up to individual states.
In addition, the CDC has agreed to remove requirements on vaccine reporting data, which he feared could have been used to identify people who entered and remain in the country illegally.
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