February 17, 2021: Update on COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution

Dear Colleagues,

There have been several changes to the vaccine program in the last week:

  • Employees of Columbia, Weill Cornell and NYP who are in category 1a (patient facing) now receive the first dose of the vaccine at the Armory; second doses are described in more detail below.
  • Second doses for employees: second doses of the Pfizer vaccine are being administered to CUIMC employees in the Myrna Daniels Auditorium on Friday 2/19 only, during the hours of 6 am to 7:30 pm. Individuals who were scheduled to return earlier in the week should instead come on Friday. If an individual is unable to get their second vaccination on 2/19 or prefers to return on a different day, they may go to the Armory for second dose Pfizer vaccinations during hours of operation, Tuesday – Saturday, 7 am to 9 pm.
  • All faculty and staff age 65 or older are eligible to get their first dose at any of the NYC or NYS public vaccination sites, or at the Armory as long as they are NYC residents.
  • All persons age 18 and over with certain underlying chronic medical conditions became eligible to receive the vaccine effective February 15. Please click here for more information. The Armory will begin vaccinating patients in this category on February 23. Letters were sent to Columbia, NYP and Weill Cornell patients about this today.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

The FAQ documents on the CUIMC COVID Vaccine Information page continue to be updated, so please check the site for the latest versions.

Below is the Question of the Day:

I have antibodies to COVID-19. Should I still get vaccinated?

People with antibodies to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, should still be vaccinated. This is because people can be reinfected with SARS-CoV-2 and because we don’t know how long people will be protected from existing antibodies after COVID-19 infection.

Thank you and stay safe!

Magda Sobieszczyk MD, MPH
Chief of Infectious Diseases and Co-Chair of the CUIMC COVID-19 Vaccine Committee

Melissa Stockwell MD, MPH
Chief of the Division of Child and Adolescent Health and Co-Chair of the CUIMC COVID-19 Vaccine Committee