With so many New Yorkers facing significant difficulties getting COVID-19 vaccination appointments and confusion running rampant, state Sen. Joseph Griffo, R-Rome, called for a regrouping of the state’s vaccine distribution efforts.

“New York’s vaccine distribution process is disorderly, disjointed and in disarray,” Sen. Griffo said. “While it is important that we get as many shots in the arm as we can, it is time for the state to take a quick step back, reorganize and rethink its delivery procedures and get its act together. A more effective and efficient system must be readied and implemented with a priority on ensuring that our most vulnerable populations have access to the vaccine – not the free-for-all-format that we have witnessed so far that has disadvantaged the elderly.”

Sen. Griffo also stressed that vaccine appointments that were recently voided due to the state’s negligence should be honored.

“New Yorkers who booked appointments through an unauthorized link due to a misstep from the state Department of Health or an error resulting from a state-sponsored online booking system should not be penalized,” Sen. Griffo said. “This mistake is another example of a disorganized process and shows why we must reconsider how we are providing the vaccine to the public.”

Sen. Griffo continues to urge the state Department of Health take steps to improve the delivery of the vaccine, including making it easier for the public determine their eligibility for the vaccine and where they can go to receive it and expanding eligibility for the vaccine by also prioritizing groups within each recommended segment of that population.

Earlier this week, Sen. Griffo requested that Sen. Gustavo Rivera and Assemblyman Richard Gottfried, chairs of the Senate and Assembly Health Committees, respectively, hold hearings regarding the state’s rollout of the vaccine.