Coronavirus 'Vaccine Hub' To Open In Bushwick, Mayor Says

BROOKLYN, NY — An educational campus in Bushwick will be transformed into one of the city's first "vaccine hubs" as officials work to double the places New Yorkers can get vaccinated against the coronavirus.

The Bushwick Educational Campus on Irving Avenue will be one of three schools to open as a "vaccine hub" on Sunday, Jan. 10, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Monday. The other hubs will be set up at the South Bronx Educational Campus and Hillcrest High School in the Queens.

The hubs are part of the city's plan to double the number of vaccine sites as they work toward a pledge to reach 1 million doses by the end of January. So far, about 110,000 New Yorkers have received a dose of the coronavirus vaccine.

"You’re going to see a lot more like this — using public school buildings like this as hubs for the larger community," de Blasio said Monday. "This is a model to start getting to the grassroots where we can make so much impact."

The vaccine hubs — which health officials said will hopefully give out 45,000 doses in a single day — are in addition to two pop-up clinics and five new city hospital sites that were announced on Monday. In Brooklyn, city-run sites include East New York and Cumberland branches of the NYC Health + Hospital system.

The city hopes to have 250 vaccine sites by the end of the month. It currently runs 125 and will reach 160 by this weekend, Health Commissioner Dave Chokshi said.

The expanded access comes as new groups of people become eligible to receive the vaccine.

Next week, those eligible will include home health care workers, hospice employees and additional nursing home staff.

De Blasio said he hopes that essential workers — from police officers to teachers — will be given permission to receive the vaccine as well.