A New York doctors organization on Friday applauded the expanded efforts to increase the vaccination rate by President Joe Biden's administration.

But at the same time, the Medical Society of the State of New York (MESSNY) also called on the federal government to make it easier for individual physicians to administer COVID-19 vaccinations in their offices.  

The effort to expand vaccinations around the country and in New York comes after a summertime spike in COVID-19 cases and a rise in hospitalizations, the vast majority of which were among unvaccinationed people. In New York, serious COVID-19 cases that require hospitalizations account for only 0.04% of the vaccinated population, Gov. Kathy Hochul said this week. 

“MSSNY fully supports and encourages the significant efforts laid out by President Biden to get the COVID-19 pandemic under control. As the spread of the Delta variant increases and the number of related hospitalizations and deaths rise, we need aggressive measures to stop the spread," said the group's president, Joseph Sellers. 

Biden's administration is requiring all federal workers to be vaccinated and is calling on companies with more than 100 workers to require vaccinations as well. Still, Sellers said more can be done to encourage vaccinations, including provisions that would enable doctors in private practice administer the vaccine. 

“We are especially encouraged by President Biden’s acknowledgement of the important role physicians play in the effort to convince their unvaccinated patients to get the shot," Sellers said. "At the same time, we urge the Administration to engage in efforts to help make it easier for physicians to give the shots in their offices, including facilitating the availability of smaller dose vials, encouraging state governments to reduce excessive reporting requirements, and other steps that will further enable community-based physicians to vaccinate their patients during their visits.”