36 THE QUEENS COURIER • HEALTH • SEPTEMBER 2, 2021 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
health
Less than 1 percent of vaccianted New Yorkers have been
infected with COVID-19 since January, city data reveals
BY KEVIN DUGGAN
editorial@qns.com
@QNS
An infi nitesimal number of New
Yorkers who received the COVID-19 vaccine
have tested positive for the virus,
while almost all people hospitalized with
the illness had not received their shots,
according to new city Health Department
data announced last week.
“Here’s the commonsense bottom line:
vaccines keep you alive and out of the
hospital,” said City Health Commissioner
Dr. Dave Chokshi at Mayor Bill de Blasio’s
daily press briefi ng on Aug. 25.
Of fully vaccinated New Yorkers, 0.33%
were diagnosed with the coronavirus, 0.02%
were hospitalized and 0.003% died of the illness.
Meanwhile, 97% of people hospitalized
with COVID are unvaccinated, according
to the Health Department analysis.
“It makes clear that vaccines continue
to be extremely eff ective,” de Blasio said
on Aug. 25. “Yes, there are some breakthrough
cases, that’s true, but the bottom
line is the vaccine overwhelmingly
works on things we care about the most,
which is stopping people from being hospitalized,
stopping people from coming
up with the most severe illnesses, and
certainly, most importantly, protecting
lives, stopping people from losing lives to
COVID.”
The Health Department collected
the data from January through August,
including several months before the more
contagious delta variant started to drive a
resurgence of cases in June.
Data from more recent weeks show
that unvaccinated people are 13 times
more likely to end up in the hospital with
COVID compared to inoculated people.
Th ose without the shot are also three
times more likely to be infected in the fi rst
place, according to Chokshi.
“Although you might have anecdotes
about breakthrough cases, let’s keep in
mind that the plural of anecdote is not
data,” the city’s doctor said.
Fidelis Care expands its reach with new offi ce in Rego Park
BY JULIA MORO
editorial@qns.com
@QNS
Fidelis Care opened a new community
offi ce in Rego Park to expand its reach in
helping people understand their individual
healthcare options.
Fidelis Care is a New York state-based
organization that off ers aff ordable health
insurance to over 2.3 million people
statewide. Rego Park Chief Member
Engagement Offi cer Pam Hassen said
that community offi ces are essential as
they try and help as many people get coverage
as possible.
“We have found that having offi ces
in the community has been instrumental
in helping people understand the different
options for healthcare coverage,”
Hassen said.
Fidelis Care has been in the Rego
Park area for about 25 years but recently
moved just two blocks away from its
original location. Th e new location is at
95-01 63rd Dr.
Hassen said that educating the community
on what healthcare options are
available to them has never been more
important as things have changed with
the American Rescue Plan (ARP) legislation.
Th e ARP, signed by President Joe
Biden, lowers the cost of health insurance
and off ers more pathways for aff ordable
health coverage.
“We encourage people to call or come
in, there are a lot of changes with health
care with ARP so we are happy to help
people from the community understand
their options,” Hassen said.
Fidelis Care representatives will be able
to help residents get low-cost coverage
through the New York State of Health.
ARP allows more people to get covered,
especially people who make a higher
income who were previously ineligible.
Fidelis Care has two other Queens
offi ces in Flushing and Jamaica and 27
total offi ces across the state.
“It really provides a good opportunity
for one-stop shopping,” Hassen said. “It’s
for member services, inquiries and for
new potential members.”
For more information, or to make an
appointment, individuals may call Fidelis
Care at 888-FIDELIS (888-343-3547);
TTY: 711. Th e latest Community Offi ce
and StreetSide schedules are available at
fi deliscare.org/offi ces.
Photo courtesy of Fidelis Care
The new Fidelis Care storefront in Rego Park.
Photo by David Dee Delgado/Reuters
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