Transcript: Mayor de Blasio Appears Live on the Brian Lehrer

February 5, 2021Brian Lehrer: It’s  the Brian Lehrer Show on WNYC. Good morning again, everyone. And we begin this  Friday, 11 o""clock hour as usual with our weekly Ask The Mayor segment, my  questions and yours for Mayor Bill de Blasio. Our Ask The Mayor lines are open  at 6-4-6-4-3-5-7-2-8-0. 6-4-6-4-3-5-7-2-8-0. Or you can tweet a question, just  use the hashtag #AskTheMayor. And good morning, Mr. Mayor. Welcome back to  WNYC.Mayor Bill de Blasio: Good  morning, Brian. How you doing?Lehrer: I""m  doing okay. Thank you. And let me start it with what looks like good news and  bad news about Opening Day at Yankee Stadium today.Mayor: A  different kind of Opening Day.Lehrer: Absolutely.  Opening Day for the COVID vaccine supersite that is only for people who live in  the Bronx. And from what I""m seeing, the good news is that they have thousands  of appointments available. The bad news is that means there are thousands of  unclaimed appointments. How does it look to you?Mayor: Oh,  I think it""s going to be extraordinary. I""ll be up at Yankee Stadium shortly.  We""re going to have a wonderful celebration of this site opening up. And I""m  going to be joined by one of the great Yankees of all time, Mariano Rivera,  who""s going to really help us to get the message out to the people of the Bronx  in multiple languages, that it""s so important to get vaccinated. And we really  want to make sure that this is for the people of the Bronx. This is for folks  who have been hit very hard by COVID. This is for folks who haven""t been able  to get appointments previously. So there are still appointments remaining, I  want to emphasize that. I""m sure they will go very fast, but anyone who wants  one of those appointments who is a Bronx resident only, can go to  somosvaccinations.com. That""s S-O-M-O-Svaccinations.com or 1-8-3-3-SOMOS-NY.  And this center will be open every day at Yankee Stadium, 8:00 am to 8:00 pm.  As we get more supply, we""re going to expand those hours, go to 24/7  eventually. But there are appointments available. I""m sure there""ll be snapped  up quickly, but people should take advantage of this opportunity for all  Bronxites to get vaccinated.Lehrer: You""ve  cited, of course, vaccine hesitancy as a reason for disparities in COVID-19  vaccine coverage, especially for people of color. But we""re wondering if a  bigger issue might still be signing up for appointments? Like what""s the City  doing to help those with weak internet access or poor technology skills to work  with the appointment websites?Mayor: Well,  not only the points you raise about access to the internet and skills with the  internet, but also there""s language issues. And for a lot of seniors, they""re  just not comfortable going online. So, anyone who qualifies, so folks 65 and  up, and the folks who qualify in those essential worker and public service  categories can call 8-7-7-VAX-4-NYC. So, it""s 8-7-7-V-A-X-4-N-Y-C, and make an  appointment on the phone in multiple languages. We are improving the website.  And so, the website experience now is better because it clarifies where there  are open appointments available. Doesn""t make people go through as much  upfront, makes it simpler in that way. And again, our plan is ten languages in  which people can directly apply with the applications themselves for  appointments in those languages. 

And of course, in other languages available  through translation service, all for free, of course. But we""re going to make  further improvements to the website to make it more user-friendly. And we""ll  have definitely more to say on that in the next few days.Lehrer: Emil  in Fresh Meadows, you""re on WNYC with the Mayor. Hello, Emil.Question: Hi  I""m a 69-year-old male who""s also a cancer survivor. I""ve been trying for over  three weeks to get an appointment using your website and the phone. Website is crashing,  the phone an hour and a half hold, and then they hang up. Finally getting an  appointment with New York State at Jones Beach for tomorrow morning. Why do I  have to travel 30 miles each way to go get an appointment for a vaccine when I  live in New York City? You mentioned that you opened up 17 pop-up centers  throughout the city. None of them, none of them are in Northeast Queens. That  includes Fresh Meadows and Bayside and White Stone and Little Neck and  Douglaston. We have people here that also need the vaccine and we""re not  getting anything. The closest place to get a vaccine is Hillcrest High School,  and they never have appointments. So why don""t you consider Northeast Queens  and try to get that improvement on the website which is impossible, and the  phone calls? To get through on that phone number that you gave, you have an  hour and a half wait until you finally get to speak to somebody, if you get to  speak to somebody at all.Lehrer: Emil,  thank you. Mr. Mayor?Mayor: Thank  you. Emil, look thank you for everything you""re saying, because we have to  continue to do better. That""s the bottom line. I do want to make sure that  folks in Northeast Queens get served better. There are more sites coming. Emil,  right now we would be doing three times as many vaccinations a week or more if  we had enough supply. And we""d got to put this in perspective, Emil and Brian,  that we are still being starved of supply. I""ve called upon the federal  government to demand that the other pharmaceutical companies help Moderna and  help Pfizer. That""s still an area where we could see a lot more progress. I""ve  called upon the federal government, the State government to let us use second  doses now and backfill the supply in the coming weeks. The things that would  allow us to speed up, we need more help. And we want to have more sites and we  want to serve Northeast Queens better, and other parts of the city. We have  focused the sites on where the sheer horrible impact of the coronavirus was the  very worst, where the most people died, where we saw the most suffering and the  most potential new suffering if we don""t get people vaccinated. But we want to  serve everyone. Emil, waiting an hour and a half on the phone, certainly not  acceptable at all. And I""ve been monitoring what""s going on with the phone  line. Most people are having a much faster experience in that. I""m very sorry  you had that experience. And I""ll follow up to find out if we have to add more  customer service reps or whatever it is, we will do that immediately. But we need  to get everyone served and we have to keep just doing a better job, more sites,  better customer service, et cetera.Lehrer: And  there is the Citi Field. We mentioned Yankee Stadium, also Citi Field  supersite, which is near all those neighborhoods that he mentioned about to  open. Do you have a date on that?Mayor: We""re  getting an exact date on Citi Field. It again, Citi Field would be up already  if we had had the supply. So this is what""s so frustrating. New York City could  be doing half a million vaccinations per week right now. We just don""t get the  supply. And so my goal is to see a lot of these sites go to 24 hours. And then  to go deeper into any community that doesn""t have enough sites. We could be  doing so much on the ground right now, but we just are not getting all the help  we need. And again, two things I think could really make a difference – getting  the entire pharmaceutical industry to participate in the vaccination  production. That""s something that I think is an area of tremendous possibility  and getting that greater freedom to vaccinate with the second doses, we need  State and federal help to get that done.Lehrer: And  one more up on that. The City promised to release data this week outlining  where vaccine recipients live by ZIP code. Is that data still coming?Mayor: No,  it""s – I’m going to be very clear. I""m the person who made the promise. I said,  we will do ZIP code data. And I did not say it""s ready this week. I got to find  out the day it will be ready. And we""ll publicly announce when we""ll have it  by. This data, there""s a lot to be done to get it right on all this. That""s why  we wanted to make sure first to give the citywide data, which I announced on  Sunday. Obviously, very sobering. Points out there are real disparities that we  need to overcome. And one of the ways we""re going to overcome those disparities  in vaccination is with targeted efforts like we""re doing today at Yankee  Stadium. That""s just for Bronx residents. That""s a part of the way to bring  greater equity. But we will be publishing ZIP code data so people can see  exactly how vaccination is going. And I""ll get you a date for sure on when  that""s going to be.Lehrer: We  had a call-in this week for taxi and rideshare drivers now that they""ve been  put on the vaccine eligible list, about how they protected themselves so far  and acknowledging the context of the already devastating pre-pandemic finances  for so many yellow cab medallion owners, because of all the competition from  the app companies, et cetera, crashing their market value. And we got a call  from the driver named Dorothy from Brooklyn, who had a question for you that I  couldn""t answer. So, we invited Dorothy to call back today for Ask The Mayor  and she did. So, Dorothy, hello again. And here you go. You""re on with the  Mayor.Question: Yes.  Good morning, Brian. Good morning, Mr. Mayor. It""s been a pleasure for me to  talk to you today. My name is Dorothy, as Brian said, and I""m 64 years old. I  have lost all my retirement and I cannot make more than a minimum wage as a  [inaudible] driver. The only thing I have is debt. You promised to help Mr.  Mayor. And in August, you said, if the White House and Congress changed, you  will work with our union for debt forgiveness. The Comptroller said it would  only costs the $75 million over the 20 years. So the City with a [inaudible]  budget of $90 billion. The Democrats won like you said [inaudible]. Please  don""t tell us the City""s given us free bankruptcy advice. [Inaudible] is an  insult. We want debt forgiveness. And you can help make it happen. When will  you keep your promise to us? Not the TLC, we want and need City Hall  [inaudible]. Mr. Mayor I know you are in the end of your term, I’m asking you  to make it as a legacy. Please thousands, thousands of old people, older than  me are suffering right now with no money, no food, no health care, no housing.  [Inaudible] it’s about to collapse on us because of the debt –Lehrer: Mr.  Mayor, debt relief for taxi drivers. Let me get you an answer. Dorothy. Mr.  Mayor?Mayor: Dorothy,  thank you so much. And Brian, very, very appreciative that you got Dorothy on  so I could hear from her directly. And I feel immediately for Dorothy because  she""s going through so much and it""s just horrible. And the story of how all  this happened is a very painful one. And I think the bottom line is we""ve got  to find some way to help. We haven""t been able to up to now because of  everything else. Because of the fact that we""ve been in horrible financial  straits as a city. But I think the possibility now is much better. Dorothy""s  point is really well taken. We have a much better situation in Washington that  very well might give us the resources to do something better and help these drivers.  Look, we fought to get these drivers minimum wage. They didn""t have it before.  We fought against the for-hire vehicle companies, the Ubers and Lyfts who I  think were acting oppressively towards working people. There’s been a lot of  things we tried to do to get people relief. But I hear Dorothy loud and clear.  If we get money from the Congress, I want to find a way to help these drivers.  I don""t have a specific proposal yet. I want to be very clear. There""s  different options out there, but if I""m going to embrace one, I have to be  absolutely convinced it will work. But it hinges on getting the relief we need.  And I do think that that’s a real possibility now for the first time. I mean  the election in Georgia opened the door to the kind of stimulus that could  finally give us the ability to help these drivers the way they deserve. So that  is something I hope to have more news on once we see what really happens in  Washington, if we""re going to get a true stimulus that helps us back on our  feet. So we can help deserving working people like these TLC drivers.Lehrer: This  question was in play before the pandemic caused the fiscal crisis. Why didn""t  you do it then rather than now? Wait for help that may or may not be coming  from Washington?Mayor: You  know, Brian, there were proposals over time. Proposals that would have cost  hundreds of millions of dollars or more. Some proposals were in the billions.  The original sin here really is because of lack of regulation of the lending.  That""s what got these drivers in this horrible situation. The lending was  regulated by the federal government and the State government. And we only found  out too late, how bad the situation was. But we were not in a position to  afford that kind of relief. It just was always true. And I appealed to the  federal government for relief for these drivers, State government. We could not  get that. And now look again, if we get the kind of stimulus that gives us real  resources, I want to do whatever I can to help these drivers. But this is a  very painful, complex history. And it""s not as simple as we could just write a  check and make it go away. We need much more in terms of help to be able to  address this. But I want to, I feel for them, I want to find a way to help  them.Lehrer: Jacqueline  in Bed-Stuy. You’re on WNYC with the Mayor. Hello, Jacqueline.Question: Hi  there. I am currently working as both a contact tracer and a case investigator.  And first I want to share two things I have learned from this job, which I do  largely with immigrant populations and not in English. And then ask what you  can do. The two things I have learned are that a huge number of people who have  tested positive in poorer communities actually don""t know that they shouldn""t  be walking around. They tell me, I""m fine. And don""t realize that they have a  communicable disease. They are not watching cable TV, listening to this show,  anything like that. Secondly, a lot of people simply can""t skip work if they""re  feeling fine. They don""t have the means. I doubt that the programs we have in  place are replacing their salary. What can be done? I think a lot of the  immigrant communities we""re dealing with, the undocumented, that""s not a  question we ask them. [Inaudible] lack of information, you know, and I think  sometimes I think flyers throughout those neighborhoods saying, did you know,  if you test positive, you actually can communicate COVID – I""m concerned with  these poorest immigrant communities. And I think there just must be some kind  of informational thing that could be done? And how could salary be replaced if  you are working off the books?Mayor: So,  okay. That last piece was very, very important to clarify. Jacqueline, please  leave the information with WNYC because I want our Test and Trace leadership to  follow up with you and hear about these experiences so we can do everything we  can to reach people better. Jacqueline, are you part of our Test and Trace  program? Are you saying that that""s where you""re working as a contact tracer?Question: Yes.  So, essentially I’m working for a health company under the auspices of New York  City Health + Hospitals. Yes, as a temporary pandemic job, basically.Mayor: And  thank you for doing that work. It""s very, very important. I hear the  frustration, but I know every time you""re talking to people, it""s giving a much  greater chance that people will get educated, will get the support they need.  Look, first of all, paid sick leave is a crucial point here. For folks who  do have a kind of job, who""s on the books, paid sick leave will cover them  between what the City has done, what the State""s done, for just a period of  quarantine, which is now per the CDC 10 days. It used to be 14, it""s now 10  days. Paid sick leave covers that timeframe. So, people should not have any  loss of income. They should be very comfortable taking the time they need to  quarantine. If someone""s working off the books, I agree with you, that""s a  challenging situation. And we got to see if we can find better solutions. And I  want the leadership at Test and Trace to talk to you about that and see how we  can address that. For the folks who don""t know that it""s a danger to be out  there if they are infected, this is a real challenge because there is  misinformation, there""s lack of information. You""re right. You know, some  people watch cable news all day, some people never see cable news. But this is  why Test and Trace is so important because trusted voices, including a lot of  neighborhood voices and people speaking to people in their own language, is  part of educating people as to the dangers and letting them know if they live  in a multi-generational home, we""ll get them – they can stay in a hotel for the  10 days for free, or if they need to stay in their home, we""ll get them food,  we""ll get them medicine. This is what Test and Trace, and particularly the Take  Care initiative within Test and Trace, is all about, is helping people  understand how they can navigate and be safe. But we know, constantly, we have  to educate people better. So, this is helpful, and Jacqueline let""s follow up  with you and see what we can learn from your experiences. Lehrer: And she mentioned people who don""t have the ability to take a day off  from work even when they""re sick or if they""re feeling well, but they may be  contagious. I think that also plays into the disparity in who""s getting  vaccines. And I wonder if there""s a way for the City to help those who might  have jobs that are not flexible enough, mostly low-income people, you know, to  take a number of hours off and make an appointment to go to Yankee Stadium or  somewhere to get a vaccine. Mayor: Well, it""s a real interesting question, Brian – is there a different kind  of approach or a different kind of incentive? We""ve talked about this but  haven""t found really the right way to do it yet. Again, the paid sick leave I  know is tremendously helpful for a lot of folks. And because we have, you know,  more and more places, flexible hours that would be outside of the work hours,  that helps. But to be very clear, blunt, the lack of supply is screwing up all  of this, because if we had supply of the vaccine, we""d be 24 hours all over the  place. We would be deep, deep, deep into a variety of communities. Right now,  60 percent of our vaccination sites are in the communities hardest hit by  COVID, primarily African-American, Latino, and Asian communities that really  bore the brunt. But we can""t run them on the hours we need to, that would help  so many working people. But I will definitely go back to our team, our health  leadership, and see if there is something particularly for folks who might be  undocumented or might be working off the books that we can do to incentivize  vaccination. Lehrer: Later today, Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, and as I understand it,  all of the leading mayoral candidates, will be coming together for a joint news  conference calling on you to drastically reduce or altogether suspend ballot  petitioning. And for people who don""t know, that""s the process of collecting  thousands of signatures from eligible, in this case, democratic voters, in  order to secure a spot on the mayoral democratic primary ballot. The Governor  signed a law last week that reduced the number of signatures required and the  amount of time people would need to be out collecting them. But that change  still means thousands of volunteers will still need to be out trying to engage  in non-socially distance interactions just to obtain signatures so their candidates  can get on the ballot. And they want you to take emergency action to  drastically reduce or eliminate the signature gathering process while the  pandemic is going on in the primary season. Will you do that? Mayor: So, first of all, the whole approach here should be based on health and  safety. The point you raised about the Governor signing the law, to the best of  my understanding I""ll go double-check, Brian, but the only way we could cancel  that kind of in-person petitioning is with State law. What I want to see is a  different approach to the maximum extent possible, again, focused on health and  safety. You got to have something to determine who gets on the ballot. There  has to be some measure of grassroots support for a candidate to get on the ballot.  I think that""s fair. There""s lots of ways that could be done potentially  including online. So, I very much would like to see a change here because we""re  in the middle of a pandemic, but I am not certain that""s something I can do  alone. I""ll get you a better, clearer answer. But I think that requires State  law. Lehrer: Anna in Manhattan, I think, you""re on WNYC. Hi, Anna. Question: Good morning. Thank you for taking my call, Brian. First time  caller. Lehrer: Glad you’re on. Question: Good morning, Mr. Mayor. Mayor: Good morning, Anna. How are you?  Question: I would be better, but I""m blessed. I""m 82 years old, but I""m calling  about the heat and hot water and Grant development in Harlem.  Lehrer: What about it?  Mayor: Okay. What""s going on, Anna? Question: Sometimes we have it, sometimes we don’t. Yesterday, it went off at  almost five o""clock, no heat. And then when I went to get some water, the water  was cold as well. So, I had to go to bed early, because it got too cold in  here. And the workers – it""s not the workers’ fault because the workers had came  upstairs to see what my problem is, and they said they""d been having a lot of  problems with the boiler. Now, they need some help.  Mayor: Okay, Anna, I want you to give your information to WNYC please. Last week  – Anna and also Brian – we got a call for someone calling on behalf of a friend  at NYCHA with a heating issue. I had the general manager for all of public  housing, Vito Mustaciuolo, reach out to your call from last week. That issue  got resolved. The apartment was made warm again. That situation got a good  outcome. I want to make sure we get a good outcome for everyone at Grant Houses  as well. So, I""m going to have Vito call you later today, Anna, and see what""s  going on and get help. There""s no – we just, I never want to see anyone,  particularly an 82-year-old, who has worked so hard your whole life, I never  want to see you go without what you deserve. So, we got to get the heat and hot  water back for you. And I will have the guy literally who is in charge of all  the operations of NYCHA citywide, call you directly and figure out how we can  get this back for you and your neighbors. Lehrer: Anna, we will take your phone number off air for that, if you want to  give it, hang on. Artace in Brooklyn, you""re on WNYC with the Mayor. Hello,  Artace. Question: Yeah. Good morning. I""m the parent of a child who ACS took on October  13th 2015, and it""s like they stole my son, they sent him to Pennsylvania. Now  he""s in Nassau County and HRA is paying $237,000 to hold my son hostage in the  back of an old building in Nassau County called SCO. And he""s very human, his  twin sister stays in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. She hasn""t seen him in five  years, and I don""t know why they""re doing this to my son. And I want him to  look into it, into the board of education and to ACS at 150 Williams Street to  find out why they""re taking our children from school because they""re a little  slow, they say – for OT. My son is a strong, healthy boy [inaudible] nights,  you know, I’m sleeping without my son. I went to see him in Nassau County in  secret where he lives there. And in the back of an old cobweb house, they put  him and nobody""s looking. I called ACS a thousand times, and nobody""s looking  to why they put my son there. I go to court 330, street – Jay Street in  Brooklyn, family court, I""m paying the lawyer $500 every two months and she""s  doing nothing. The judge is doing nothing. I don""t know because of his friends  and his Jewish, I don""t know what it is –  Lehrer: Very complicated situation, obviously, Artace, and it sounds like a  tragedy. Mr. Mayor, how can you help her? Mayor: It does sound like a very painful situation, Artace. I""m so sorry you""re  going through all that and that your son is. These are very complex issues, and  all I can say is, please give your information to WNYC. We""ll have a senior  person from the administration call you today and see if we can find a way to  fix this situation or improve this situation for you and your son. And I think  that""s all I can say given the complexities of these kinds of issues. Lehrer: And another question about schooling in Brooklyn, but of a more general  nature, via Twitter. This question says, “School opening issue is a practical  and moral emergency. You need to ask the Mayor about the teachers at my  Brooklyn middle school and high school want a plan, get vaccines, want to teach  in person. The Mayor and the Chancellor needs to step up, give a plan, undo  unique and unreasonable two-case rule.” I guess that means two cases and a  school temporarily closes. Is that it?  Mayor: Yeah. Well, it""s not as simple as that because there are a variety of  conditions. There are certain circumstances, not all, but there are certain  circumstances where two cases can lead to a closure for 10 days. Because again,  remember the standard is now 10 days. But what happens first is if those cases  are identified by the Test and Trace Corps, there’s a temporary closure to  determine what the full facts are. And sometimes two cases do not lead to a  longer closure, sometimes they do. But I hear loud and clear that policy is  being re-evaluated, obviously, because we need to improve our ability to get it  exactly right. I""ve said a few days back, we""re going to have an announcement  this month about the next steps with reopening schools for this school year.  And our first focus of course will be on middle school, and as soon as we have  that plan ready, we will be announced. Lehrer: Yeah. In the news today, Mr. Mayor, there are now two lawsuits on behalf  of incarcerated New Yorkers, some at Rikers, suing the State for allowing  residents of nursing homes and shelters to get vaccinated while denying similar  eligibility to incarcerated people who they say should be treated like other  folks who are in congregate living situations based on the risk. Will you  satisfy that demand for City jail inmates without a day in court? Mayor: Again, Brian we""ve – forgive me for being a broken record – we got to be  honest and clear about what the State of New York decides here. The State of  New York has taken upon itself extraordinary powers. A lot of people are asking  the question right now in Albany if it""s time for that to change as we start to  come out of this crisis, I do think restoring local control so we can make our  own decisions would really help here. But on this example, the State decides  that. There""s a small number of folks in our correction system, folks who are  incarcerated, who have particular high risk, I think it""s about 500 who were  authorized to be vaccinated. A number of them wanted to be, a number of them  did not choose to be vaccinated. Correction officers are being vaccinated, but  like every other New Yorker, there are some who want to be, there are some who  do not want to be. We do need to start reaching the larger population but  that""s something that the State has to decide. And then once we get that authorization, we""ll go to the  effort of reaching those who are incarcerated, but do not be surprised once  again, if a number of those individuals choose not to take the vaccine. We""re  seeing this across the whole city. Even in our public health system, the  employees of our public health system – the original vaccination drives that  went on for weeks – about 50 percent chose not to get vaccinated, even though  it was free, it was available at their work site, they were encouraged. I think  there is a hesitancy issue. That is another part of this puzzle. It will take  time to overcome, but I am convinced with each passing week and month, more and  more people will choose to as they see others around them getting  vaccinated. Lehrer: But in the meantime, do you want to lend your voice as a  matter of politics to those calling on the State, since you said it""s up to the  State to offer the vaccines to people who are incarcerated, you want to make  that call right here? Mayor: I would make that call with one important note. It should be according to  need. There are folks who are vulnerable because of pre-existing conditions,  age, etcetera. Those folks who are incarcerated, I absolutely want to  prioritize. Folks who are not as vulnerable. I""m right now concerned about our  seniors who are very vulnerable. So, I would say on that one, I think it should  be according to need, not simply across the board. Lehrer: So, the congregate living itself doesn’t impose enough of a risk like it  does in other congregate living situations, in your opinion? Mayor: Of course, there""s risk, but the question here – I care deeply for all  people, really. And if someone happens to be incarcerated, they""re still a  human being. We want to protect them. But I want to emphasize what the health  care professionals are saying. The greatest risks right now in New York City  still are for those 65 and over particularly 75 and over. Those are the folks  who are in the greatest danger. And while we have this kind of supply problem,  I do have to keep everyone focused on getting, to the maximum extent possible,  to the folks in greatest danger. Lehrer: Do you want to stay two minutes over to hear some good news and with some  good news that shows that the Ask the Mayor call-in and what you tell people  can be effective? Leslie –  Mayor: Anytime there""s good news, I""ll stick around. Lehrer: Leslie, in the Bronx, you""ll be our last caller today with the Mayor.  Hi. Question: Yes, I have good news. While I was listening to this program, I went onto  the website for the Yankee Stadium vaccine, and I went through the whole  website and I scheduled myself for an appointment for a vaccine on February  10th. So, it works. You just have to make sure – Mayor: Leslie, what neighborhood are you in?  Question: I""m in the Bronx, in Riverdale.  Mayor: I love it. I love it. What do – give people advice. What do you need? You  said you have to make sure, what? Question: You have your insurance card with you, because the website requires that  you put down the number on your insurance card, what insurance you have. And it  only gives you like four minutes to fill out the form. So, have your insurance  information with you before you start filling out the form –  Lehrer: Leslie, thank you. But that opens up a can of worms. What if you""re not  insured, Mr. Mayor? Mayor: Well, I don""t have the website up in front of me, but obviously there are  people not insured. And I will say, Brian, really important for all your  listeners to remember – we guarantee health care here in New York City, anyone  who cannot get insurance on the exchange can get an NYC Care card, can get  health care for free or very reduced costs through our Health + Hospital  system. No one should be without health care [inaudible] 3-1-1 –  Lehrer: Right, but do you really need health insurance information to sign up –   Mayor: No, you do not – you do not need health insurance to get vaccinated. It  is for free, even if people do not have health insurance. So, I have not seen  the portion of the application Leslie""s talking about. What I""d say to everyone  is go online, make your appointment, if you do not have a health insurance  card, you""re still going to get an appointment. If there""s any question, call  the phone line and you can get additional help that way, because want to make  sure that anyone who has any problem, if you can""t resolve your problems online  – again for the Bronx site at Yankee Stadium, that""s 833-SOMOSNY. For other  sites, that’s 877-VAX4NYC. So, you can always get questions answered there. But  no, we are going to vaccinate people regardless if they have insurance  unquestionably. Lehrer: Thanks as always Mr. Mayor, talk to you next week. Mayor: Thanks, Brian.  

日期:2021/12/30点击:10