After reports earlier this week that suburban people were migrating to the Fort Washington Armory in Manhattan to be vaccinated, a new policy was put in place requiring everyone who makes an appointment on the spot to present proof of residence in the five districts.
NewYork-Presbyterian, which operates the site, further specified that 60% of the appointments would be reserved for residents of Washington Heights, Inwood, Harlem and the South Bronx (although all existing appointments for first and second doses are honored).
But banning outsiders alone will not guarantee that residents eligible for the vaccine – now including those 65 and older – have consultations. NewYork-Presbyterian says it is working with more than 40 communities and religious organizations to reach residents of the neighborhoods it is supposed to serve.
“We can use an approach similar to what we did with the Census, be on the spot and on the street with a tablet and spread the word where people are,” said Maria Lizardo, executive director of the nonprofit Washington Heights Northern Manhattan Improvement Corporation, adding that more government support is needed to make this kind of disclosure. She believes that the people she works with at NewYork-Presbyterian are “well-meaning and want to defend the community and are receptive to feedback”.
The controversy over who is first in line in Washington Heights is part of an ongoing discourse on how the city can guarantee equitable access to the coronavirus vaccine. Despite the insistence of Mayor Bill de Blasio and Governor Andrew Cuomo that the communities hardest hit by the coronavirus should not be left behind, early data showed in December that black and Latino New Yorkers were vaccinated at much lower rates than than whites. The mayor said that updated demographic data would be made available this week, but extended the deadline to Sunday.
Lizardo, who is an ambassador for the Cuomo Vaccine Equity Task Force, noted that there is still much more publicity that needs to be done by “trusted messengers on the spot”, both to help people who want to be vaccinated and to provide more information to they are still skeptical.
Other efforts could include proactively calling eligible recipients, making contact with food pantries and establishing direct vaccination lines, said Lizardo. But she added that all of this requires extra funds for community groups to hire more people, mainly because many nonprofit organizations were depleted during the pandemic.
In turn, NewYork-Presbyterian has established a special online portal for local elderly centers to book vaccines for its members and has increased the number of daily advertisements available through the portal since its opening, said Marcie Gitlin, director of the Center for Adults Living Bem , at the Washington Heights & Inwood YM / YWHA. She added that her senior center and others in the area are coordinating transportation for those in need.
“We are very grateful that NewYork-Presbyterian has made special considerations for people in our neighborhood to get the vaccine,” said Gitlin.
On Thursday, the NewYork-Presbyterian also appeared to have remedied the language barrier that local media reporters The City observed when visiting the arsenal earlier in the week. The city said there was no one available to answer questions from Spanish speakers on Tuesday, despite Washington Heights being a predominantly Spanish-speaking neighborhood. On Thursday afternoon, employees stationed outside the arsenal could be heard answering questions in Spanish, and Spanish speakers leaving the site said they had no problem communicating with health professionals inside.
Still, some local elected officials turned to Twitter to call NewYork-Presbyterian for not guaranteeing equitable access from the start.
“Our hospitals shouldn’t take weeks to prioritize vaccines for local residents in hard-hit neighborhoods like Washington Heights, let alone provide the basics about language access,” tweeted counselor Carlina Rivera, who chairs the Hospitals Committee of the City Council. “Each system must endeavor to deal with the serious inequalities in serving COVID-19.”
Our hospitals shouldn’t take weeks to prioritize vaccines for local residents in hard-hit neighborhoods like Washington Heights, let alone provide the basics of language access.
Every system must strive to deal with the serious inequalities in the service to COVID-19. https://t.co/jnLk6TJPAg
– Carlina Rivera 利華 娜 (@CarlinaRivera) January 28, 2021
People who spoke to Gothamist about vaccination in the arsenal on Thursday said they lived in Washington Heights or other parts of the city and reported a stress-free experience by signing up for an appointment, getting the vaccine and making an appointment for the second dose. Their experiences provided a striking contrast to the difficulty and confusion that some New Yorkers faced when trying to find a compromise through city-run websites.
But some said they would not have known about the arsenal had it not been for a recommendation from their doctor at NewYork-Presbyterian / Weill Cornell or word of mouth.
“It’s a surprise that I was able to get vaccinated,” said Victor Leyn, 70, who lives in Washington Heights. “My whole family tried to make an appointment for me and they failed a few weeks in a row.”
Leyn said he was at a close appointment with his ophthalmologist that day, when he was told he could get an appointment in person at the arsenal. He said he got vaccinated right away. (A security guard said people can always sign up for an appointment on the spot, but not necessarily for the same day.)
“They should put up pamphlets or something,” said Leyn. “Information is the key to getting back to normal life.”