BINGHAMTON, N.Y. (WCBS 880) — Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Tuesday announced that New Yorkers will no longer need appointments at all state-run vaccination sites beginning Thursday.
While vaccines in the state were once hard to come by and appointments were difficult to obtain, the governor says the state is in a much better spot than it was at the beginning of the year.
“We’re now at a different place where we have open appointments at mass vaccination sites and vaccine sites almost all across the state,” Gov. Cuomo said.
He says now that the state has opened up vaccinate sites for walk-ins for everyone over the age of 16, there is no excuse not to get inoculated.
“For the people who felt, ‘Well I’m not comfortable going on the internet, I don’t want to call, I don’t want to talk to a lot of people.’ All the obstacles are removed, all the barriers are removed,” Cuomo said. “Just show up and roll up your sleeves and the mass vaccination sites have the capacity to handle it.”
Local health departments also have the option to allow walk-in appointments as well. New York City has already dropped appointment requirements at all city-run vaccination sites.
Additionally, Gov. Cuomo says New York will adopt the new guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which says all Americans who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 no longer need to wear masks outdoors.
“When you are outside biking, hiking running or in small gatherings, you don’t need to wear a mask if you are fully vaccinated,” Cuomo said.
He notes that the updated guidance will be “liberating now that the weather is warmer.”
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