Tenney Urges Immediate Release of COVID-19 Vaccination Rates for New York

Washington, D.C. – Congresswoman Claudia Tenney (NY-22) today sent a letter to the New York Commissioner of Health Howard Zucker urging he immediately release the COVID-19 senior vaccination rate data from the state's health department. In the letter, Tenney stressed that vaccinating New Yorkers should be a top priority for state and local leaders.

Full text of the letter is below and a signed copy can be found here. 

Dear Mr. Zucker, 

As New Yorkers seek to recover from the devastating impacts of COVID-19, I write to you today to urge you to immediately release the COVID-19 senior vaccination rate data from the New York State Department of Health. Vaccinating our citizens should be a top priority for our state and local leaders. At this time, over 55 percent of seniors aged 65 and older have received a COVID-19 vaccine in the United States. Unfortunately, that data does not include New York State seniors. New York is reportedly one of the few states in the country that has not released this critically important data. 

Unfortunately, the vaccination rollout in New York has been riddled with errors and misguided decision-making. Instead of utilizing local health departments, Governor Andrew Cuomo pushed the vaccine disruption through large hospitals without providing a plan, resources, or additional space. County officials say this led to thousands of vaccines being thrown out due to expiration. Due to this gross mismanagement, New York currently ranks in the bottom half of the country in terms of vaccine utilization. We cannot afford these problems at such a critical time in our recovery process. 

In addition, New York’s “vaccine czar” Larry Schwartz recently called county officials across the state, reportedly to urge them to support Governor Cuomo politically. This raises serious ethical concerns that vaccine distribution is being politicized, underscoring the need for detailed vaccination metrics to be made public now. 

Local health officials have requested information regarding vaccination rates to better understand the effectiveness of the vaccination program. However, the officials I have spoken with have yet to receive a response from your Department. This is unacceptable.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 8 out of 10 COVID-19 related deaths nationwide were citizens over the age of 65. As public officials, we must do everything in our ability to ensure our most vulnerable are vaccinated quickly and effectively. The only way to properly gauge vaccination progress is to be fully transparent with all metrics. 

Thank you for your prompt attention to this urgent matter, and I look forward to your response. 

Sincerely,

Claudia Tenney
Member of Congress

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