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Coronavirus Update New York City: Mayor de Blasio unveils new citywide campaign called 'NYC Vaccine for All'

Coronavirus update for NYC

ByEyewitness News WABC logo

Tuesday, December 22, 2020

Mayor unveils campaign to educate people on vaccine's safety

Joe Torres has more on a new campaign unveiled by Mayor Bill de Blasio called 'NYC Vaccine for All."

NEW YORK CITY (WABC) -- Mayor Bill de Blasio unveiled the details of a new citywide campaign called "NYC Vaccine for All."

Already the largest vaccination effort in New York City's history, the goal of the campaign is to educate people and provide reassurance that the two federally authorized coronavirus vaccines are "safe, effective and free."

"We will get the message out using all types of media and different languages, whatever it takes to help people understand that this is the difference maker," he said. "This vaccine is what will allow us to move forward, all the pain, all the suffering, all the loss can be defeated."

The goal of the campaign is to educate people and provide reassurance that the two federally authorized coronavirus vaccines are "safe, effective and free."

To help drive home the safety message, the mayor today welcomed three New Yorkers to his daily coronavirus briefing, and each one detailed why they had no worries rolling up their sleeves.

"I got my shot and I'm feeling good," health care worker Kevin Cruz said. "No side effects, no nothing."

Cruz, who worked at North Central Bronx Hospital since 1978, said he has seen the city through some of its worst health crisises, like the AIDS epidemic.

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""We've been through a lot of things here, but never seen anything like this." said Cruz, remembering the early days of the pandemic in the spring, which he called "ground zero."

Cruz said at the beginning of the pandemic, "no one knew whether you were going to go home."

"When you came on a shift, you didn't know if you were going to get out," he said. "You really didn't."

Cruz pleaded for New Yorkers to take the shots.

"We need to do what we got to do," he said. "This is the beginning here. I count myself as lucky for having gotten the shot, and lucky to be able to help these people who are dealing with it every day."

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