New Yorkers are willing to drive six hours to get the Covid-19 vaccine

She said she spent hours looking for a place at the locally managed facilities near her in Westchester County, but was unsuccessful. She then turned to a state-run web portal that allows any New York state resident to book appointments at 13 state-run mass distribution centers.

Jacob. The K. Javits Convention Center, a state-run center in Manhattan, was his first choice, but the only slots available were in one location in Potsdam, St. Lawrence County.

“Research was an exercise in futility, so I’m going to have a little break,” said Laverty, who decided he would work remotely on a rental for a few days while receiving the injection.

Other New York residents also said their vaccination appointments were a good excuse for a mini vacation. But most described the nomination process as irritating and said they were frustrated because the state had not allocated more doses to more densely populated regions.

Local officials across the state also complained that the state was diverting precious doses of vaccines to its own centers – where any New Yorker can apply – instead of referring them to local pharmacies, clinics or county-run locations serving area residents.

Peter Bartfeld, a 70-year-old lawyer, said he made an appointment at a hub in Plattsburgh, which he estimates is a six-hour drive from his home on Long Island’s Valley Stream. He chose the location after two weeks without being able to guarantee a closer location.

“This is absurd,” he said. “Obviously, you have an allocation error in the state. Why do people need to drive from Long Island to Plattsburgh? “

Approximately seven million New Yorkers meet the state’s current eligibility criteria, which include people aged 65 and over, healthcare professionals, residents and nursing home staff, as well as essential workers, including teachers. State officials said they received about 250,000 doses of vaccine a week.

About 600,000 people made appointments at the state’s vaccination centers, said Department of Health spokesman Gary Holmes, and about 75% of them were made by New Yorkers from the same region of the state. State officials did not respond to requests for demographic data about who got an appointment or was vaccinated.

Long Island residents can use state centers at Jones Beach and SUNY Stony Brook, and New York residents can use city locations or state centers at the Javits Center or the Aqueduct racetrack in Queens, each of which can vaccinate at least 1,000 people a day. For most of last week, the only places with available times were Plattsburgh and Potsdam, which are in rural areas. Authorities say the two sites can handle 500 consultations a day.

Governor Andrew Cuomo and health officials say vaccine doses are distributed across the state based on population, and certain providers are tasked with focusing on certain groups: hospitals for health professionals, county-run locations for professionals essentials, including teachers, and pharmacies for people aged 65 and over.

Nancy Bendiner, 73, made appointments for her and her husband at a state-run center in Utica after a county-run clinic near her home in Red Hook, NY, sold out in nine minutes. Their appointments are on consecutive days, so they will spend the night in Utica, she said.

Linda Puiatti, a 65-year-old painter from Dutchess County, is traveling to Binghamton. “It is a little sad that we are doing this in this style of lottery. The person closest to the phone wins the prize, ”she said.

Melissa DeRosa, the governor’s chief aide, said state officials are ensuring parity between residents and those outside the city. Holmes said the state could consider rebalancing the allocation if there are persistent problems.

“Our goal is to get vaccines as quickly and efficiently as possible – if New Yorkers in an area aren’t making all the appointments available and someone is willing to travel to get an injection, it just reflects the woefully inadequate supply of vaccines that we received from the Trump administration, ”he said.

Biden government officials said last week they would increase the number of doses allocated to the states, a measure that Cuomo welcomed.

Local leaders said vaccine distribution declined when the centers were opened. Oneida County executive Anthony Picente, a Republican whose county includes the state hub on the outskirts of Utica, said the allocation for a county-established drive-through distribution point dropped from 3,000 doses during the week from January 5 to 500 doses during the week of January 20. The state website opened on January 19.

Holmes did not say how many doses of vaccine are being directed to state centers, but said that county allocations have been reduced because the distribution network and the eligible population that local health departments were focused on have changed.

Debra Blalock, 68, said she is concerned about road conditions, but still plans to drive from Dutchess County to Potsdam to get a vaccine. She struggled with the ethics of getting an appointment in another part of the state, but said she felt comfortable doing so because the people who lived closest to her had the same ability to apply.

Although he feared his trip north, Bartfeld said he learned on Thursday that he got a last-minute appointment to the state center in Queens. The process was efficient and everyone was pleasant, he said.

“Once you get that nomination, it’s worth gold,” he said.

Write to Jimmy Vielkind at [email protected]