Gov. Andrew Cuomo says New York expects to receive enough doses of Rockland-based Pfizer's vaccine for 170,000 people in just under two weeks – if
they're given the green light by the FDA to go public.
That approval could come during a hearing on Dec. 10. It
could then be delivered on Dec. 15.
The state is planning to give nursing home staff and
residents first dibs on the vaccine. Next on the list is congregate care
facilities and health care workers in emergency room and ICU settings.
The governor says at least 40,000 additional doses of a
COVID-19 vaccine made by Moderna are expected to come to New York if the FDA
approves them during a hearing on Dec. 17.
"By the end of December, the administration
suggests that there will be enough to vaccinate 20 million people with two
dosages, which is 40 million dosages. That means 6% of Americans,” he says.
“Gives you an idea of where we're going to be coming into January…You see how
far we have to go."
It’s not yet clear how many doses each county in the
state will receive or where they will be stored.
Gov. Cuomo says to get back to some sort of normalcy,
75-85% percent of the population must be vaccinated. Citing experts, the
governor says that could happen as soon as June, but could take until September
2021.
During his briefing in Albany, Gov. Cuomo also announced that his briefing schedule would be Monday, Wednesday and Friday through the
vaccination process in the state. He also brought back Linda Lacewell and Larry
Schwartz, former top aides, to help lead the team that will be in charge of
distribution.