Virus Numbers Are Surging. Why Is New Yorkâs Vaccine Rollout Sluggish? With a new variant of the virus emerging elsewhere in the country, itâs crucial to vaccinate New Yorkers quickly. But so far, only about 88,000 have received the shots. Virus numbers were soaring in New York City as 2020 came to a close.Credit...James Estrin/The New York Times Jan. 1, 2021 As the final hours ticked away in a harrowing year, New York City on Thursday once again found itself in a worrying position in the pandemic: Hospitalizations were climbing for the fourth consecutive month, the positive test rate in some areas had doubled and vaccinations that were supposed to bring normalcy had gotten off to a slow start.