NEW YORK (1010 WINS) – A vaccination site in Washington Heights has changed its rules and will only vaccinate New York City residents after people were coming from all over to get their shots there.
Local residents in the hard-hit community weren't able to secure an appointment at the Fort Washington Armory site, run by New York-Presbyterian Hospital, amid the crush of out-of-towners.
In the first weeks of appointments, people have been coming from places like Long Island, Westchester and Rockland to the site to get their vaccine, filling up hundreds of appointments and leaving few spots for locals.
In a statement, the hospital said future appointments will be for New York City residents only. At least 60% will go to residents from Washington Heights, Inwood, Northern and Central Harlem and the South Bronx.
"The Armory site was selected specifically to allow easier access to the vaccine to these communities, and a dedicated outreach team that includes bilingual staff has been created to expand community outreach efforts in Northern Manhattan," New York-Presbyterian said.
The hospital said it will honor current appointments, including those for second vaccination doses, but that no new appointments will be made for people outside of the five boroughs.
"It can't be that we're just having central sites that folks who might be more privileged are focusing on," Mayor Bill de Blasio said Wednesday. "It has to be deep into communities, neighborhood sites, trusted local providers."
