Nassau County opens its first Covid-19 vaccine distribution site on Tuesday, Jan. 5, County Executive Laura Curran announced at a news conference on Monday.
The vaccine center is located at Nassau Community College’s CCB building. Northwell Health, which is leading vaccination efforts on Long Island, has partnered with the county for the initiative.
“We know the vaccine is key to recovery,” Curran said. “It’s the key to getting us back to normal, keeping our kids in school, keeping businesses going.”
This news comes as the number of people eligible for the vaccine increases statewide. When the vaccine first became available, it went first to nursing home employees and residents and high-risk hospital workers. Today, Gov. Andrew Cuomo added all public-facing healthcare workers to the list.
The point of distribution, or “pod,” will be staffed by Nassau County Department of Health workers, members of the volunteer medical reserve corps, and Northwell staff. It will be open seven days a week.
Eligible Nassau residents who would like to make an appointment to receive the vaccine can visit nassaucountyny.gov/vaccine. The vaccine is free, and “immigration status is irrelevant,” Curran said.
Nassau County’s Covid-19 positivity rate is 8.3 percent, meaning that 8.3 percent of residents who got tested were positive for the virus. There are 655 people hospitalized for Covid-19 in Nassau, with 90 in ICU and 57 intubated, Curran said.
Statewide, the positivity rate is also 8.3, when accounting for all microclusters, Cuomo said, while Long Island is at 9.3 percent.
Cuomo also announced on Monday that Nassau University Medical Center (NUMC) is the state’s third-lowest performing hospital in terms of administering the Covid-19 vaccine.
For more coronavirus coverage, visit longislandpress.com/coronavirus
Sign up for Long Island Press’ email newsletters here. Sign up for home delivery of Long Island Press here. Sign up for discounts by becoming a Long Island Press community partner here.
