Guide Created To Help Bed-Stuy Get Vaccinated

BED-STUY, BROOKLYN — A new guide has launched to help residents in Bed-Stuy get the coronavirus vaccine as the neighborhood nears a 50 percent vaccination rate.

Bed-Stuy Strong — a mutual aid network of more than 4,000 neighbors — has put together a "Vaccination Booking Guide" for the neighborhood, including a list of nearby walk-in sites, ways to schedule an appointment and frequently asked questions about the shot.

The guide comes from the network's "Vax-Support" group, which previously helped hundreds of neighbors who had trouble signing up for a vaccine slot make and get to their appointments.

ZIP codes covering Bed-Stuy have been shown to have some of the lowest coronavirus vaccination rates in New York City, despite the neighborhood being one of 33 hard-hit areas health officials said they would target with vaccine distribution.

The first of the five ZIP codes that span Bed-Stuy reached the 50 percent vaccination rate last week, meaning half of its adult residents have gotten at least the first of two shots against the coronavirus.

The lowest vaccination rate is found in 11233, which also includes Ocean Hill and Brownsville, where only 34 percent of residents have been partially vaccinated as of Tuesday.

The highest vaccination rates continue to be in wealthy New York City ZIP codes, including in Brooklyn, where as many as 70 percent of residents have been partly vaccinated. In Manhattan, the rate of those partially vaccinated is as high as 81 percent in some ZIP codes.

On top of the guide, Bed-Stuy Strong is also offering to help neighbors get to vaccine sites by coordinating transportation and handing out Lyft codes. Contact information can be found in the guide.

Find the guide here.