Reckless stubbornness
Back-to-school is on the horizon, so plan
ahead: Get vaccinated by Aug. 9
COURIER L 24 IFE, AUGUST 6-12, 2021
EDITORIAL
OP-ED
As anticipated, Mayor
Bill de Blasio tweaked
the city’s mask policies
on Monday — recommending
that everyone, including vaccinated
New Yorkers, wear
face coverings in public indoor
settings.
The policy, however, is a
recommendation for the vaccinated,
not the stringent
mandate that had been in
place for months before it was
lifted back in May. Nonetheless,
it is based on the latest
Centers for Disease Control
(CDC) guidance issued last
week as the nation struggles
to combat another increase
in COVID-19 cases due to the
highly-contagious Delta variant.
For unvaccinated New
Yorkers, however, the story is
different. They’re required to
mask up whenever they leave
home. If they don’t like the
masks, the city has an answer
for that: Get the COVID-19
vaccine.
The question, of course, is
why vaccinated New Yorkers
ought to mask up in public
indoor settings. The answer
is that they can still become
infected with COVID-19, and
spread the virus to others unknowingly,
even if they did
get the shot.
Does that mean the vaccine
isn’t effective? Of course
not. In fact, the statistics show
that the COVID-19 vaccine is
the most effective treatment
we have toward preventing
serious illness and death
from infection.
While some media outlets
focused on the few thousand
vaccinated people who
wound up becoming infected
and symptomatic, the actual
data shows that more than
99 percent of all vaccinated
Americans have not been
infected at all. That’s 99% of
about 180 million Americans
who’ve received the vaccine
thus far.
Nothing is a sure thing,
but the COVID-19 vaccine is
about as close to a sure thing
as it gets. Still, there’s that
segment of the population resistant
to both masks and the
vaccines who bristle at the
new recommendations and
the vaccine mandates as a violation
of personal liberty.
And their reckless stubbornness
is not only getting
old, it’s now unnecessarily
prolonging this pandemic
from which everyone (supposedly)
wants to move on.
If they don’t want governments
telling them what to do
anymore, then they need to
fi nd the wisdom to stop looking
for reasons to avoid doing
the right thing. If everyone
else can roll up their sleeves
voluntarily and take their
medicine, then so can they.
The effectiveness of the
COVID-19 vaccine has shattered
so much doubt about its
use. It’s time that everyone
realizes that reality so we can
fi nally end this pandemic.
BY MEISHA PORTER
& DR. DAVE A. CHOKSHI
In early July, we were
elated to welcome students to
classrooms for Summer Rising,
the City’s free summer
academic and enrichment program.
Children were clearly
excited to be back with their
teachers and friends, and
those feelings have only grown
over the past few weeks. In
an elementary school in East
Harlem, youngsters proudly
displayed the solar-powered
ovens they’d built to cook
s’mores. In a school in Chinatown,
students gasped with
joy over the “magical” science
experiments performed by Jason
Latimer of YouTube’s Impossible
Science channel. And
in a school in the Bronx, students
dove into their lessons
and demonstrated an outdoor
mindfulness activity.
Experiences like these are
refl ected in the smiles of hundreds
of thousands of children
who are in school to learn,
play, connect, and grow this
summer. Both children and
their parents are grateful to
have this bridge to the next
school year.
We see the fi rst day of school
— Monday, Sept. 13 — as a
homecoming. In fact, it comes
shortly after NYC Homecoming
Week, a fi ve-borough celebration
of the city’s resilience
throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
As we think ahead to the
fall, the health and safety of
students and school communities
are at the forefront of our
planning. We are asking New
Yorkers to help with a crucial
part of this work: get vaccinated.
If your child is between
12 and 17 years old, August 9 is
the last day for your child to
get the Pfi zer vaccine in order
to be fully vaccinated in time
for school.
This date is important to
remember because the vaccine
for adolescents involves a twodose
regimen, and it takes two
weeks from the second shot for
someone to be considered fully
vaccinated. So, think of this as
your doctor’s orders: Schedule
your vaccine today if you have
not already.
Safely and fully reopening
schools this fall is a milestone
for our city, and we are eager
to see students back in their
school communities. We are
doing everything in our power
to create a safe learning environment—
from disinfecting
every school, to re-confi guring
classrooms and improving
ventilation, to stocking up
on face masks and hand sanitizer.
And last week, Mayor de
Blasio announced that school
staff must show a one-time
proof of vaccination or weekly
COVID-19 tests. The new requirement
recognizes that the
single most important way we
can help our children go back
to learning, and save lives, is
with vaccination.
As parents ourselves, we
know the decision to vaccinate
is important, and we would do
anything to protect our children.
The vaccine is safe and
very effective. Over 250,000
young New Yorkers have now
gotten the shot.
At school, vaccination allows
children to be in the
classroom, participate in afterschool
activities and sports,
and gather with friends —
safely. It also provides a more
stable learning environment,
(for example, students who are
considered fully vaccinated
are not required to quarantine).
Getting the shot has never
been easier in New York
City. Access to vaccination is
widely available in all fi ve boroughs,
and the City is offering
a new $100 incentive for anyone
(including children) who
gets their fi rst dose at a Cityrun
site. Nearly all New Yorkers
live within half a mile of
a public vaccination site, and
everyone is eligible to request
and receive at-home vaccination.
Pediatricians and other
health care providers can
also help answer questions,
and many are able to give the
COVID-19 vaccine at a backto
school check-up, along with
other routine immunizations.
If you need a provider, call
1-844-NYC-4NYC and you will
be transferred.
We’re so excited to welcome
all New York City students
back into classrooms in September.
Because of vaccination,
our buildings will soon
be fully open and our young
people will be learning. We
deeply appreciate the partnership
of the city’s families and
the commitment to keeping
our school communities safe
and healthy.
Meisha Porter is Chancellor
of the NYC Department of
Education. Dave A. Chokshi,
MD, MSc, is Commissioner of
the NYC Department of Health
and Mental Hygiene
As parents ourselves, we know the decision
to vaccinate is important, and we would do
anything to protect our children.