New York mayor also wants to vaccinate tourists, city to 'open completely'

The American city of New York now wants to vaccinate tourists against Covid-19 in addition to residents. Mayor Bill de Blasio makes Friday “Mobile vaccination locations” announced via Twitter to be placed in “iconic” places in the city. There, “everyone who needs it” can be vaccinated with the Janssen vaccine. “And if the government gives us permission, we will also vaccinate all tourists,” De Blasio said.

Now, only residents or people who work in New York are eligible for a vaccine. The mayor also intends to vaccinate tourists, in order to allow the city’s summer public life to return as much as possible. De Blasio wants to reopen the city “fully” before July 1. The first steps have been taken this week: catering establishments are allowed to receive guests again and metros are running again day and night.

New York, the most populous city in the United States and the most popular place for tourists before the pandemic, had become the epicenter of the American corona crisis last year. In March last year, half of the American infections were located in New York. The city now has the virus under better control. The number of infections is declining, partly due to the vigorous vaccination campaign.

Half adults
The same goes for other places in the United States. About half of adult Americans have now received at least one injection in the arm. In April, vaccinations were carried out at a rapid pace and, at its peak, 4.6 million people received a vaccine in one day. After that, the injection rate decreased; this week, that was reduced to less than 1.9 million vaccinations per day.

In some places, even more vaccine doses are available than people willing to be vaccinated. In El Paso and Texas, hospitals had to cancel an order because insufficient agreements had been made. Employers such as Aldi and McDonald’s reward their staff with extra hours off work or a financial bonus if they are vaccinated. The New Jersey governor hopes to increase vaccine readiness by giving free beer to residents who have been stung.