Governor Andrew Cuomo and a coalition of groups today issued a letter to Department for Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar urging the federal administration to support underserved communities and protect undocumented immigrants in the federal COVID-19 vaccination program. The current federal program lacks funding to bolster states’ efforts to distribute the vaccine to Black, Brown, Asian and low-income communities which are underserved by private healthcare facilities. It also requires states to execute a data sharing agreement which includes providing identification data that could be shared with multiple federal agencies, including immigration agencies, which could dissuade undocumented immigrants from taking the vaccine. Under the leadership of Governor Cuomo, New York State has proposed a modified system which would protect residents’ personal information and help ensure confidence in the vaccine and its distribution program.
“We are quickly moving toward a COVID-19 vaccine, which is good news. However, the federal government’s current plan to vaccinate Americans neglects key priorities that we need to effectively distribute the vaccine to millions of New Yorkers,” Governor Cuomo said. “We need to focus on Black, Brown, Asian and low-income communities that are historically underserved by the healthcare institutions that are key to the federal government’s plan. I’m also concerned that by asking for personal information, undocumented immigrants could be dissuaded from taking the vaccine. Time is of the essence as we get closer to the distribution date and I urge the administration to address these issues quickly.”
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Source: The Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo