By DIANE S. WILLIAMS

The City of New York and other employers where DC 37 members work are rolling out plans to distribute COVID-19 vaccines for their employees.

New York City is currently vaccinating certain groups of people in phases determined by New York State starting with 1a classified frontline essential workers at hospitals and other health care facilities. 

Additionally, Mayor de Blasio said New York City will open five vaccination sites on Monday, Jan. 11 for 1b classified workers, which includes some 1.3 million frontline essential workers who are police, firefighters, teachers, homeless shelter workers, correction officers, and persons age 75 and older.

Inoculation is voluntary and free at worksites. The two FDA-approved COVID-19 vaccines, manufactured by Pfizer-BioN Tech and Moderna, require two doses that are administered several weeks apart. 

Your agency will notify you when the state guidelines are updated to include your category of work. Learn more here: http://on.ny.gov/2JUN7IH. 

Find a full list of those currently eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine here. If you’re eligible, use NYC’s Vaccine Finder to find your nearest COVID-19 vaccination location. The City’s COVID-19 Vaccine page has resources including a “What New Yorkers Need to Know” FAQ.

Dr. Anthony Fauci recommends that persons infected with COVID-19 should wait 90 days post infection before being vaccinated to prevent interference between natural antibodies and the vaccine.

A safe and effective vaccine will help us get back to work, reopen the economy and return to a more normal cadence of life.

We’d like to invite you to AFSCME’s a virtual town hall Tuesday, Jan. 12, at 6 p.m. with leading scientific experts and career officials who are intimately familiar with the vaccine approval and distribution process, dedicated to public health and safety, and who are acting free from political influence.

We believe that if you are properly educated, you will make the decision that is best for yourself, your colleagues, your families and your community consistent with your own personal beliefs and health status.

We want to prepare you with the best available information, so you have the confidence to make the best decision.

The event will take place over Zoom on Jan. 12, at 6 p.m. ET. Please register for the event and submit your questions for our panelists. A Spanish language translation will be available during the webinar. It will also be livestreamed on AFSCME’s Facebook page.

While the science on the pandemic continues to develop in real time, it is believed that the COVID-19 vaccine along with diligently following CDC guidelines and safety protocols like hand washing, using hand sanitizer, social distancing, wearing masks, observing travel restrictions and regular COVID-19 testing can help prevent the spread of the deadly virus. These steps can bring us closer to ending this global pandemic.

DC 37 continues to advocate for members on every level, especially in these unprecedented times. Members can review their agency’s return to work policies on this website. DC 37 will provide updates as they become available.