See the mass vaccination site now open at the Javits Center

Nearly 10 months after the Jacob K. Javits Center became a temporary hospital during the peak of the coronavirus pandemic in New York, the convention center has now opened as a mass vaccination hub. The state-run Manhattan site officially opened on Wednesday for those eligible under expanded phases 1A and 1B, which includes healthcare workers, essential workers, and New Yorkers aged 65 and older. Appointments are required at the Javits Center site. Find out if you are eligible to receive the vaccine and schedule an appointment here.

“It’s been a challenging year for all of us – especially the events industry,” a post from the Javits Center on Twitter reads. “But we are honored to play a role in vaccinating New Yorkers & defeating this invisible enemy.”

Javits Center has the capacity to vaccinate 10,000 New Yorkers in a 24-hour period with the potential to serve 25,000 people per day, once the supply increases, as WNYC reporter Gwynne Hogan reported. Gov. Andrew Cuomo has said that the federal government is only sending 300,000 doses of the vaccine per week and those eligible could receive “an appointment date as far as 14 weeks in the future.”

In addition to the Javits Center, four additional state-run mass vaccination hubs are opening this week, including at the Westchester County Center, the New York State Fair Expo Center, Jones Beach, and SUNY Albany. The state will set up 15 additional mass distribution sites across New York in the coming weeks.

“Our singular focus is getting shots into arms and with the opening of these state-run sites today, we are doing just that,” Cuomo said in a statement Wednesday. “We are making the vaccine available based on federal guidance and are continuing to push it out the door quickly and efficiently, but due to the federal government’s limited allocation, appointments are filling up fast.”

“At the end of the day, this is a supply issue and we need the federal government to provide us with more vaccine as quickly as possible because there is simply not enough and this is the weapon that will win the war.”

New York City has launched its own 24/7 mass vaccine hubs this month, with sites now open at the Brooklyn Army Terminal, Bathgate Contract Postal Station in the Bronx, 125 Worth Street in Lower Manhattan, and the Health + Hospitals Vanderbilt Clinic on Staten Island. A location will open at La Marqueta in East Harlem on Friday, at the Queens Corona Clinic on Saturday, and at Empire Outlets on Staten Island next week.

Plus, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced plans to open a vaccination site at Citi Field in Flushing as part of a deal with the Mets Organization. On Wednesday, the mayor said the city is also working with the Yankees to bring a vaccine site to its Bronx ballpark.

The city aims to open 250 vaccination sites by the end of the month. Currently, there are 160 hubs open at hospitals, clinics, urgent care centers, pharmacies, and private providers. De Blasio said the city administered 101,799 doses last week and set a goal of 175,000 doses this week. The city aims to distribute 1 million doses by the end of January.

A new website from the city helps those eligible find a vaccine location near them and make an appointment. Find it here.

RELATED: 

• Inside the 1,000-bed temporary hospital at the Javits Center
• 24/7 mass vaccination site will open at Citi Field this month

All photos courtesy of Don Pollard/ Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo on Flickr