U.S. Rep. Tom Reed continued to blame Gov. Andrew Cuomo Wednesday for what he called New York “dropping the ball” in the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccination program.

Reed, R-Corning, also said he welcomed President Joe Biden’s offer to set up mass vaccination clinics manned by FEMA and the National Guard.

“There is a tremendous amount of disinformation coming out of the governor’s office,” Reed said as he opened his weekly media call with reporters Wednesday morning.

Reed said the state was receiving 400,000 doses of the Moderna and Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines a week, but its vaccination program blew up when it opened the program to residents 65 and older before completing the 1-A group of healthcare workers.

That meant 7 million individuals were eligible for COVID-19 vaccine when the state was only receiving 300,000 doses a week, which was reduced to 250,000 this week, Cuomo said during his daily coronavirus update on Wednesday.

The governor said he was grateful that the president had ordered a 16% increase in the number of doses to states over the next three weeks.

Both the governor and Reed praised Biden for agreeing to purchase an additional 200 million doses from Pfizer and Moderna. Still, Cuomo said New York faced the same shortage of vaccine as other states.

“It’s great news,” he said. “It’s going to take six months to get the full supply.”

Reed maintained that other states were not having the same trouble as New York in distributing vaccine.

Many vaccination sites in New York have had to cancel clinics because they had not received vaccine or were running low. The Cattaraugus County Health Department had to cancel three clinics last week and delayed opening a second site because no doses of vaccine were received.

In his press call, Reed said he was heartened that Biden had increased his goal from 100 million vaccinations in 100 days to 150 million. Reed noted he challenged the president to set a goal of 200 million doses in 100 days.

Reed hopes new vaccines from Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca will receive FDA approval in the coming months, adding to the supply.

Reed said he has been unsuccessful in getting vaccinations for up to 100 Corning Inc. employees, who manufacture the vials for COVID-19 vaccine. He considers them essential workers because an interruption in making the glass vials could bring shipping of vaccine to a halt.

Reed said the state’s vaccine shortage stems from opening up the clinics to 7.5 million people before the 1-A group was completed. It’s not true that the CDC directed the state to do that, he stated.

“By opening up that valve to 7.5 million when you were only getting 400,000 doses overwhelmed the system,” Reed said.

In addition, the state does not have a computer data management system capable of handling mass vaccinations. The antiquated system is run by decades-old software, Reed added.

“Other states use artificial intelligence to more effectively manage” the process, the congressman said.

The state “didn’t kick the tires” or run any mock vaccination plans before going live with reservations for vaccinations, Reed said. “Now they are trying to fix it in real time.”

Reed said he thought New York’s vaccination program was “past the point of no return. I am for full federalization in New York because they completely dropped the ball.”

The Federal Emergency Management Agency and the National Guard would run the statewide vaccination program under Reed’s plan. All the programs might not have to be taken over, he added, “if they can demonstrate what is working.”

Reed said, “We need to stop blaming each other. I will do whatever I can to get the herd immunity date as soon as possible.” He’s hoping for June. It’s can’t come soon enough for small businesses, he said.

Reed said the 58-member Problem Solvers Caucus, which he co-chairs, is looking for common ground in the House on the president’s proposed $1.9 trillion COVID Rescue package.

A bipartisan approach will probably mean a more focused, less expensive bill. A bipartisan Senate caucus, the Sweet Sixteen, has emerged as an influencing group since helping to craft the $900 million COVID package in December.

“The Problem Solvers Caucus and senators are going to lead the way,” Reed said. He and his co-chairman, Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., have communicated to the White House their willingness to help craft a bipartisan bill.

The Plan B approach will be a process called budget reconciliation, which Republicans last used to pass a $2 trillion tax cut for business and the wealthy in 2017. Reed said that could be a slow process.

“There are things we could do right away,” Reed said, highlighting COVID vaccine distribution. There is less support for the $15 minimum wage Biden has included in his COVID Rescue bill, the congressman said. He cannot support the $15 level, but agreed the federal minimum wage needs to be re-examined.

Reed said there was also increased discussion about targeting the stimulus checks Biden proposed at $1,400 to individuals more in need of the money. There is also the issue of enhanced unemployment which runs out in March.

Other issues that Reed raised include local and state aid and protection from legal liability related to COVID-19, which is a growing concern. The eviction moratorium is also causing problems for landlords.

He asked how will individuals and businesses affected by COVID-19 be able to pay back rents.