Freda Bernhardt, 101 years old, receives the COVID-19 vaccine in Rochester. Photo courtesy of New York State

More front-line workers in New York state will be included in the first phase of COVID-19 vaccinations in the state, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced on Monday.

In a press briefing on Monday from Albany, the Democratic governor said federally-qualified health center workers, EMTs, coroners, medical examiners, funeral home workers and other congregate care workers and residents would be among those also receiving the vaccine this week.

Asked if this would include pharmacy workers from CVS and Walgreens — tasked by a federal program to vaccinate those in congregate facilities — Cuomo and state Division of Budget director Robert Mujica indicated that they would, in fact, be among those receiving the vaccine.

“The pharmacy workers are in the first group of health care workers,” Mujica said. “They are in the 1A category. So pharmacy workers will get vaccinated as well. The vaccinators will get vaccinated along with the residents of the nursing homes as well as the nursing home staff.”

“1A is the highest category so they are in the top category,” Cuomo added.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo Mike Groll via AP

Pharmacists at CVS and Walgreen are expected, at least locally, to begin administering the vaccine at long-term care facilities beginning this week. However, pharmacists had not originally been slated to get the highly anticipated vaccination themselves until Phase 2, which originally included first responders, child care providers, public health workers and those deemed high-risk due to comorbidities and health conditions.

“My concern is that we will be face-to-face and in contact with people proven to be very susceptible to getting COVID and have been in lockdown going into these facilities,” said Michelle Gruber, a pharmacist and the pharmacy manager at CVS in Jamestown, said last week. “We don’t qualify for the vaccine until Phase 1 is done. That is counterintuitive to me.”

Seemingly, Albany heard those concerns.

“We’re now talking about who’s getting vaccinated, and let me be clear: there is no politics in the vaccination process,” Cuomo said. “There’s no governor, no county executive, and no mayor who controls the process, and anyone who says that is not telling the truth or violating the law. This is entirely done by medical professionals and our hospitals have already vaccinated more people than any state in the nation.”

Cuomo announced on Monday that more than 38,000 vaccine doses have been administered in New York state as of that morning — the highest reported total in the nation thus far. The first 346,200 doses of the Moderna vaccine were expected to begin arriving in the state on Monday as well. An additional 120,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine are expected later this week.

The governor also announced the launch of New York’s Vaccine Equity Task Force chaired by Secretary of State Rossana Rosado, Attorney General Letitia James, National Urban League president and CEO Marc Morial, and Healthfirst president and CEO Pat Wang. The task force will “work to ensure vulnerable and underserved communities are not left behind by breaking down the barriers to vaccination and ensuring there is equitable distribution of the vaccine across the state,” according to a release from the state.

Cuomo also announced that New York is developing Community Vaccination Kits to provide communities, particularly those located within health care deserts, with the supplies and resources needed for standing up vaccination sites.