Five sites for mass COVID-19 vaccinations will begin accepting appointments and are scheduled to open this week, Gov. Andrew Cuomo's office announced.

The sites include the Javits Center in New York City, the Westchester County Center in White Plains, and the State Fair Expo Center near Syracuse that will open today.

Jones Beach on Long Island and University at Albany sites will be opening on Thursday and Friday this week, respectively.

Additional sites are expected to be announced in the coming days. 

The opening of the sites comes as the vaccination distribution around New York has stalled over the last month. Cuomo has placed an emphasis on vaccinating health care workers first and has faced pressure to expand the pool of people eligible to receive it. 

On Tuesday, federal health officials announced people older than age 65 and those with immune compromised systems will be eligible, leading to calls by the governor to open up more supplies of the vaccine itself.

New York has been receiving about 300,000 doses of the vaccine a week; at least 7 million people are now eligible to receive it. 

The Department of Health and Human Services has announced it will expedite more doses initially reserved for second doses to send to states as pharmaceutical companies plan to ramp up manufacturing.

"New York State is rapidly expanding our networks and capabilities to get as many New Yorkers vaccinated as fast as our supply allows," Cuomo said.

"The new vaccine sites across the State will expedite our distribution to get our most vulnerable New Yorkers vaccinated efficiently. Our greatest hindrance continues to be federal inaction. We have come too far to be held back in our efforts by the inadequate vaccine supply from the federal government. I encourage New Yorkers to be patient throughout this process and urge our federal government to increase the supply to states."

Cuomo has also New Yorkers to have patience in the distribution of the vaccine. Appointments to receive the first of two doses may not free up for as long as 14 weeks. 

The mass vaccination sites are in addition to the thousands of pharmacy chains and medical providers that will be sites for distribution. Labor unions representing public workers have also been asked to distribute the vaccine, including teachers and law enforcement labor organizations.