Mayor Bill de Blasio and Queens Borough President Donovan Richards visited the Queens Police Academy on Monday, Jan. 11, where officials were administering the COVID-19 vaccine to police officers.
After visiting the vaccine hub at Hillcrest High School, the mayor headed to College Point to meet with NYPD leadership at the Queens Police Academy. The state allowed for police officers and other public safety workers to be eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccination as phase 1B began on Monday.
In an appearance on NY1’s “Inside City Hall” Monday night, de Blasio said he heard from individuals “putting their lives on the line” for New York City during his visit at the Police Academy.
“They’re protecting us. They’re performing CPR. They’re stopping overdoses with Narcan. They’re at the front line,” de Blasio said. “What they said was it gave them confidence to have the vaccine that they could go out and do their job, but also that they could tell their families that they were safe. It was very powerful.”
According to an NYPD spokesperson, 4,443 members of the NYPD received the COVID-19 vaccination on Monday, Jan. 11.
Richards, the newly elected Queens borough president, encourages all of the borough’s eligible community members to schedule their vaccination appointment.
“It was an honor to personally thank our healthcare heroes administering these life-saving vaccines at the Police Academy in College Point on Monday,” Richards told QNS. “These shots are how we will beat back this pandemic and restore our borough, and I encourage all Queens residents currently eligible for a vaccine to make an appointment to receive one as soon as possible.”
In his Tuesday, Jan. 12 briefing, De Blasio said more than 26,500 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine were given on Monday. He added that the city is on track to hit the goal of 175,000 vaccinations this week.
The state’s 1B phase currently includes individuals 75 and older, first responders, public safety officers, teachers and other school staff, in-person college instructors, childcare workers, public-facing grocery store workers, transit workers and individuals living and working in homeless shelters. Individuals 65 and older as well as immunocompromised individuals were added to the vaccine eligibility as of Tuesday, Jan. 12. Those groups join phase 1A groups, which is primarily made up of healthcare and hospital workers as well as residents and staffers at nursing homes.
For more information on eligibility requirements and vaccine locations, visit New York City’s Vaccine Finder.
