On Tuesday, September 27, 2022, the NYC Health Commissioner’s held a Communities Of Color Roundtable on the Covid-19 Booster and Influenza Vaccine on virtually on Zoom and live downtown NY.
Why did the Commissioner call the meeting at the last minute, because some of our greatest health inequities exist in communities like Harlem? Only 28% of Black New Yorkers have received a booster shot.
The meeting was a Zoom and live meeting on the new bivalent COVID-19 booster and the flu shot with NYC Health Commissioner Dr. Ashwin Vasan who stated:
“This is an important time of year for us as we’re entering flu season and COVID-19 is still with us. Thankfully we have safe, effective vaccines for both. The flu – though common – is deadly. Every year around 2,000 New Yorkers die from seasonal flu and pneumonia, which can develop as a complication of the flu. The Health Department is especially concerned about inequities we see in both COVID and flu, which are the result of systemic racism. For example, during the omicron wave, the COVID-19 hospitalization rate was more than two times greater among Black New Yorkers compared to White New Yorkers. “
The commissioner continued, “We’ll do our best to engage with communities because these boosters are a game-changer. The updated booster is specifically designed to protect New Yorkers against the omicron subvariants which account for nearly all recent infections. You can get the updated booster during the same appointment as the flu shot, so please schedule both by calling your health care providers today or by going to NYC VaccineFinder. It’s the best way to stay COVID and flu-free this season.”
Related: For more information regarding Dr. Ashwin Vasan click here.
Photo credit: NYC Health Department.
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