Stimulus, Vaccine 'Help Is On The Way,' Sen. Schumer Tells NYC

New York City NY

11 March, 2021

10:52 AM

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NEW YORK CITY — New York City will get more than just a major shot in the arm from a $1.9 trillion stimulus headed to the president's desk, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said. Schumer, who hails from Brooklyn, announced Thursday that new federally-funded coronavirus vaccine sites will open at 100 community health centers in New York. The sites will be a "super charger" for New York City's vaccine effort, Schumer said. "Help is on the way," he said. "More access, more shots, a quicker recovery," he said. The vaccine announcement came during Mayor Bill de Blasio's daily briefing in which he did a victory lap on the federal stimulus passed by Congress on Wednesday. The city stands to receive roughly $6 billion in local aid, $6.5 billion for the cash-strapped MTA and $1,400 stimulus checks for most New Yorkers — and more — de Blasio said. Simply put, the stimulus equals recovery for the city, he said. "The biggest action by the federal government for the people of this country since the New Deal," he said. President Joe Biden is expected to sign the stimulus — formally called the American Recovery Act — into law on Friday. Schumer praised de Blasio's behind-the-scenes help trying to wrangle support for the stimulus from a grassroots organization of mayors across the country. He said the new vaccine program will be organized by the federal Department of Health and Human Services. "This is great news for New York City and it's something in addition to the big bill that we passed that the mayor was so nice to mention," Schumer said. De Blasio, after Schumer left the call, said there's still not enough detail on when the new federal sites and vaccine supply will come. "I want them to speed up," he said.