Governor JB Pritzker and Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike announce that an additional 150,000 new first-dose vaccine appointments will be made available at the 11 state-supported mass vaccination operations in Cook and the collar counties and area pharmacies the week of April 12, as the State opens to universal eligibility for individuals 16 and older.
The state will deliver more than a quarter of a million doses next week to Cook and county sites open to all Illinois residents on top of tens of thousands of newly available appointments at hospitals, local county sites, and other mass vaccination sites throughout the region.
More than 80 counties have opened eligibility to all individuals age 16 and over in advance of the April 12 timeline, as more and more residents take advantage of the more than 1,000 vaccination locations operating across the state.
This includes retail pharmacies, local health department sites, state-supported mass vaccination sites, federally qualified health centers, critical access hospitals, safety net hospitals, mobile sites, rural outreach and rapid response vaccination teams.
To date, 73 percent of Illinois seniors and 42 percent of Illinoisans 16 and over have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. One quarter of the 16 and over population is fully vaccinated.
"With today's announcement that we are expanding vaccine eligibility to anyone aged 16 and older starting on April 12, let this serve as a reminder that we're taking one more step closer to a sense of normalcy," said Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle. "During these times, I am also proud of the all the hard work that is continuously being done to expand fair and equitable access of the COVID-19 vaccine to the residents of Cook County and all Illinois residents."
The State of Illinois has established 20 state-supported mass vaccination locations across Illinois where residents from anywhere in Illinois can be vaccinated. All state-supported vaccination sites require appointments.
Vaccine is also available at other pharmacies including Gerimed, HealthMart, MedShoppe, Managed Healthcare Associates, Premier/Innovatix, and 10 independent pharmacies.
To further expand vaccine accessibility in rural communities where travel distance can be an obstacle to vaccination, the State is sending vaccination teams with the capacity to administer thousands of vaccines. Teams have been deployed to 12counties so far and will visit three more this week.
Other providers include local health departments, hospitals, health centers, and clinics across the state. ■