The New York Vaccination Czar referred to as district leaders to find out Cuomo’s help: report

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo listens to speakers at a vaccination site in New York on March 8, 2021.

SETH LITTLE | AFP | Getty Images

Larry Schwartz, director of New York vaccine rollout and longtime advisor to Governor Andrew Cuomo, has called some district officials over the past few weeks to rally their support for the governor while he grapples with an ongoing sexual harassment investigation, the reported Washington Post on Sunday, citing several officials.

A district chief, speaking on condition of anonymity fearing retaliation by the Cuomo administration, told the Post that it filed a notice on Friday with the Public Integrity Department of the Attorney General’s office of a possible ethics violation by Cuomo’s office would have.

Schwartz, a former top advisor to the governor who came back as an unpaid advisor to direct the state’s vaccine distribution, is in frequent contact with local officials to discuss vaccine planning and distribution.

However, his appeals to officials over the past few weeks regarding their loyalty to the governor raised concerns that the governor’s political situation and response to it could affect the state’s vaccination operation or result in preferential vaccination decisions.