NEW YORK (WCBS 880) -- Just days into New York City’s rollout of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine to kids 5-11, thousands have already rolled up their sleeves.
Mayor Bill de Blasio said Tuesday that over 24,000 kids in that age group have gotten the shot since it first became available last Thursday.
De Blasio said that on the first day of their citywide in-school vaccine drive, 4,500 students got vaccinated. That was after just one day of a weeklong vaccination effort that will visit over 1,000 schools, including more than 200 a day.
NYC Health Commissioner Dr. Dave Chokshi said that there are about 660,000 kids within the city in the newly eligible age group -- meaning about 3.7% have gotten vaccinated so far.
De Blasio also announced additional mobile vaccination sites outside schools after some families were unable to get the shot in its first days due to running out of doses or other issues.
According to Gothamist, one school got just a quarter of the doses they asked for, while another saw staggering lines Monday because there weren’t people there to give the shots at the time scheduled.
“We saw that demand, it was actually greater than we expected, which is a very good thing,” said de Blasio. “So, what we've done immediately is shifted supply to the schools where there was a high-level demand. We've sent those mobile vaccination vans to schools where we expect high-level demand.”
The push for the youngest group of those eligible to get inoculated has been from all sides, with the city offering $100 for those who get the Pfizer shot at a city-run site.
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And with the Department of Education’s efforts, they’re giving every school with kids in the 5-11 age range to get to vaccine on a single day this week. Those kids do need a parent’s sign-off to get it — whether that be in-person or by phone.
New York City also expanded paid sick leave to municipal workers and contractors this week so they could get their children vaccinated.
The mayor said workers can get up to four extra hours per child for each shot their children would need in order to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
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According to city data, 74% of all NYC residents have gotten at least a single dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, while 87% of adults have gotten a dose or more.