This story was reported by Bart Jones, David Reich-Hale and Jean-Paul Salamanca. It was written by Jones.
More temporary vaccination sites popped up on Long Island Friday to reach senior citizens in the East End and members of the region’s growing Indian community, part of a larger push by local and state governments to improve access to the COVID-19 shots.
In Melville, 237 people were vaccinated at the point-of-dispensing site at the BAPS Hindu temple. Medical personnel from Stony Brook University Hospital administered the shots.
Snehal Shah of Nesconset was one of the recipients.
“I feel protected,” he said after getting the first of the two-shot vaccine. “I feel that I am not going to be one of the ones who’s going to spread the germs around, the disease around, so I feel that I am doing my civic duty.”
He said the whole process took about a half-hour, and he is especially relieved because his 84-year-old mother lives with him.
These efforts continued as Long Island marked a year since the first case of the coronavirus was identified in the region, the beginning of a health crisis that as of Thursday had claimed 6,040 lives in Nassau and Suffolk combined.
Nassau County Executive Laura Curran mourned that loss in a statement issued Friday, while saying the county is working to return to normal.
“On this one year anniversary of the first confirmed COVID-19 case in Nassau County, we remember the 2,935 precious lives lost, and look forward to the future with renewed hope,” Curran said.
She said Nassau “continues to lead the way” among large counties in the states “in getting residents vaccinated, which is a very positive signal for our recovery.”
So far, she added, more than 20% of residents have gotten at least one shot of COVID-19 vaccine, which is delivered in two doses in the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna formulations and as one dose with the more recent Johnson & Johnson shot.
“Although we’ve seen a major decline in cases and hospitalizations since our winter peak, we’re not out of the woods just yet. I urge residents to stay vigilant in this final stretch,” she added.
At the Melville site, people lined up to get vaccinated Friday and a waiting list had grown.
Girish Patel, a spokesman for the temple, the largest Hindu place of worship on Long Island, said it was the first of 106 BAPS temples in the United States to run a vaccine clinic.
He said many members of the Hindu community on Long Island were afraid to get the shot because of health concerns, or needed translators to help fill out forms or register on websites. BAPS volunteers worked with them, including to persuade them the vaccine was good for them and others.
“Some of them are really scared to get the vaccine,” Patel said. “Now they are so happy they got the vaccine.”
Patel said the temple now has a waiting list of 150 more people who want to get vaccinated, and is hoping the state authorizes a second clinic.
Shots for seniors in Riverhead
In Riverhead, the local senior center began vaccinating seniors age 65 and over on Friday morning, Supervisor Yvette Aguiar said.
Vaccinations will take place over four days, and 500 seniors already have signed up. Roughly 250 local seniors are expected to be vaccinated each day, and 1,000 seniors in total are expected to receive the Moderna vaccine by the end of Tuesday, Aguiar said.
Town officials received word Wednesday evening that the New York State Department of Health and Department of Labor certified the senior center as a vaccination site, but Town Hall had started preregistration earlier in the week via the town’s website.
“Riverhead has one of the largest senior populations, and after advocating to bring vaccines to the senior center, the state heard our call, and I thank the state for hearing our voices,” Aguiar said.
Seniors can register online on the town’s website, www.townofriverheadny.gov. The center is at 60 Shade Tree Lane, with vaccinations from 9 a.m. to 4 pm. Saturday, Monday and Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Nassau County and Mount Sinai South Nassau have launched a pilot program to vaccinate area teachers and school staff members from the Island Park, Long Beach, Oceanside and Rockville Centre school districts.
The Teacher’s Vaccination Pilot Program, a joint initiative between the county health department and Oceanside-based hospital, on Friday planned to vaccinate 300 teachers from those districts at Mount Sinai South Nassau’s vaccination center in Rockville Centre.
“We know that getting students and teachers back to full, in-person school instruction is paramount and this pilot program is essential to help normalize our schools,” said Dr. Adhi Sharma, chief medical officer at Mount Sinai South Nassau.
Curran added that “getting teachers and school faculty protected from this virus is key to keeping our kids in school.”
Mount Sinai South Nassau in a statement said teachers from those school districts who have not been vaccinated will be invited by their administrations to schedule appointments.
The scheduling, processing and administration of the vaccines will be completed by Mount Sinai South Nassau nursing and allied medical staff. The vaccines are provided by the Nassau County Department of Health.
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