New York on Monday dramatically expanded the number of people eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
Here is a summary of who can get it, how to apply, where to get the vaccine – and the state schedule for who gets the vaccine next.
Who is eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine in NY?
New Yorkers now eligible to receive the two-dose coronavirus vaccine are those designated in the state’s Phase 1A and 1B categories.
Eligible in Phase 1A include: healthcare professionals and hospitals, residents and employees in nursing homes, EMS workers, coroners, medical examiners, emergency care providers, individuals administering COVID-19 vaccines, employees who are in direct contact with patients, doctors, nurses, frontline outpatient / outpatient workers, dentists and orthodontists and their staff, psychiatrists and psychologists and their staff, physiotherapists and their staff, optometrists and their staff, pharmacists, home care workers and hospice staff.
As of Monday, eligibility has been expanded to those in Phase 1B.
This category includes: persons aged 75 and over, first responders and support staff for first aid agencies, correctional officers, public transport officials, public security officials, teachers and other school officials, including bus drivers, service providers childcare, face-to-face university instructors, public-facing grocery workers, people living in homeless shelters, where sleeping, bathing or eating accommodation should be shared with others who are not part of your home; and people working in these shelters.
The state presents a complete division of the phases.
How to register for a COVID-19 vaccine appointment in New York City
Vaccine appointments must be booked in advance.
New Yorkers can check whether they are eligible to receive the vaccine through this state website.
Qualified New York City residents can make an appointment to be vaccinated in more than 125 public and private locations in the five districts through the city’s Department of Health website and NYC Health + Hospitals website.
Both sites ask users to click a button that takes them to a COVID-19 “vaccine location” page administered by the city. Users are then asked to enter their address or postal code to find a vaccine supplier near them.
Users will then be directed to schedule an appointment from a public or private provider.
The city also launched a phone number, 877-VAX-4NYC or 877-829-4692, to make an appointment for a vaccine.
A pre-recorded message encourages callers who can make an appointment online to do so using the “vaccine finder” website. Otherwise, an agent can make an appointment at a vaccination post in the city, the message says.
Starting at 4 pm on January 11, the New York State COVID-19 vaccination hotline will also open to schedule vaccination appointments for eligible New Yorkers at 1-833-NYS-4-VAX.
Where can you get the COVID-19 vaccine in NY?
New York residents can find the nearest vaccination site on the city’s Vaccine Finder website.
The city currently has two mass vaccination centers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, at the Brooklyn Army Terminal in Sunset Park and at the Bathgate Industrial Park in Morrisiana in the Bronx.
The centers are also scheduled to open at 125 Worth St. in Lower Manhattan on Tuesday, Health + Hospitals Vanderbilt on Staten Island on Wednesday. Eventually, there will be locations in all five districts, the mayor promised.
The state also has a website that lists vaccine locations in other parts of New York.
Do you have to pay for the COVID-19 vaccine?
No. The vaccine is free.
Which is schedule for the remaining distribution of COVID-19 in NY?
According to the city’s Department of Health, the next group to be eligible for the vaccine, 1C, will include people aged 65 to 74, those with certain underlying health conditions and all other essential workers.
The city currently says the group is likely to be eligible from March-April, although the schedule for 1B has been significantly increased for this week.
Vaccination for everyone else is likely to start in the summer, according to the city.
Additional reporting by Nolan Hicks