Gov. Hochul Signs Order to Boost COVID-19 Vaccine Access

Governor Kathy Hochul has signed an executive order that seeks to expand access to COVID-19 vaccines in New York State, she announced on Sept. 5.

According to the order, which will be in place for 30 days—while the governor works on what she calls a longer-term solution—pharmacists in New York will be able to provide COVID-19 vaccines to anybody who wants one, ages 3 and older.

Governor Hochul made a thinly veiled reference to Florida and the federal Department of Health as part of her reasoning behind the order; Florida’s health department announced it would be ending mandatory vaccines (for any disease) on Sept. 4.

Meanwhile, the Department of Health & Human Services—led by Trump appointee Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has a history as an anti-vaccine activist—has withdrawn $500 million in funding for mRNA vaccine development. Under his oversight, the FDA has recommended the latest COVID-19 shots only for adults age 65 and older, as well as for people with pre-existing medical conditions. Various medical associations have denounced these restrictions.

Hochul’s office also drew attention to the fact that Kennedy has replaced a large part of the federal Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), which provides crucial recommendations on vaccination to pharmacies, with people similarly known to oppose vaccines.

This new iteration of the ACIP hasn’t provided said guidance on the latest COVID-19 vaccines, and won’t meet again until Sept. 18, which meant that pharmacies in New York began restricting access to vaccines for a variety of patients: children ages 3 to 17, pregnant people, and adults under age 65 without underlying conditions.

Studies have shown that “previously healthy” children can be killed or severely injured by the COVID-19 virus, while pregnant people face elevated risk from an infection.

”I promised New Yorkers that their family would be my fight. In the absence of federal leadership, we must do everything we can to ensure that New Yorkers have access to the vaccines and preventative healthcare they have come to rely on,” Governor Hochul said in a statement. “By signing this executive order, we are sending a clear message that when Washington Republicans play politics with public health, New Yorkers can still get the care they need, close to home, from trusted providers in their own communities.”

New York State Health Commissioner Dr. James McDonald chimed in with a statement of his own: ”Governor Hochul’s Executive Order provides access to the COVID vaccine for New Yorkers who choose to get vaccinated, sets us up for a smoother transition to the updated 2025-26 vaccine and restores pharmacies as a vital part of our vaccination network.

”While New York State does not require COVID vaccines, vaccination remains one of the most effective tools we have to prevent serious illness, hospitalization, and death from COVID,” McDonald added.

Hochul’s office noted that she was involved in a “regional multi-state public health collaboration among Northeast states,” in what seems to be echo of three Democrat-run Northwest states (California, Oregon, and Washington) combining into what they’re calling the “West Coast Health Alliance,” which will issue its own vaccine recommendations.

The Northeast alliance will reportedly “develop evidence-based recommendations and approaches on vaccination, disease surveillance, and emergency preparedness.”