Cook County suburban residents between the ages of 16 and 65 with certain medical conditions will be eligible for COVID-19 vaccination through the county health department with appointment registration starting Friday at noon.
New eligible residents must register at vaccine.cookcountyil.gov. The Cook County Department of Public Health will begin making an appointment through the website at noon on Friday to begin vaccinations starting Monday.
The so-called 1B-plus phase includes people with cancer, chronic kidney disease, COPD, diabetes, heart disease, weakened immunity after an organ transplant, obesity, lung and sickle disease, as well as people with disabilities, pregnant women and smokers.
The change affects suburban vaccine providers receiving doses from the Cook County suburban agency, as well as state-supported Cook County mass vaccination sites in Des Plaines, Tinley Park, River Grove and South Holland. .
The state moved to Phase 1B-plus on Feb. 25, but Cook County backed down, saying too many people over the age of 65 still could not access the shots. Other suburban counties did the same.
“In recent weeks, we have seen great progress in vaccinating vulnerable groups in Phase 1B, including our seniors. This is reflected in the figures, which indicate that more than 68% of people aged 65 or over suburban Cook County have received at least one dose, “said Dr. Rachel Rubin, a senior medical officer and co-leader of Cook County’s public health department.
Meanwhile, state health officials on Tuesday announced 102,390 more vaccines against the COVID-19 vaccine. This puts the number of vaccine doses administered statewide at 4,283,487, while 1,605,112 Illinois residents and workers, about 13% of the population, have been completely vaccinated, according to records of the Illinois Department of Public Health.
Illinois vaccine suppliers now make an average of 102,223 inoculations a day over the past week, according to records.
State officials reported that an additional 119,600 doses of vaccine arrived in Illinois on Tuesday. Illinois has now received 5,516,725 doses of the three vaccine brands, 77.6% of which have been put to arms, according to IDPH data.
IDPH officials also reported 17 more deaths from COVID-19, as well as 1,655 new cases of the disease.
That puts the number of virus deaths in the state at 20,988, with 1,213,765 Illinois residents who have been infected since the start of the pandemic.
Hospitals across the state treat 1,143 patients for COVID-19 infections. Of those hospitalized, 259 are in intensive care.
The positivity rate of seven-day cases at the state level stands at 2.2%. The percentage indicates how many of the tests performed led to the diagnosis of a new case of the disease. An average of seven days is used to smooth out any anomalies in the daily notification of new cases and test results.
IDPH officials also introduced a new data website that allows Illinois residents to track the amount of vaccine in the state intended for their county each week.
The site shows how the state is allocating this week’s supply of 458,100 new doses.
Governor JB Pritzker is expected to announce plans later this week that will allow for greater reopening of businesses and activities statewide as vaccines become more abundant.
“How can we make sure that as we open up, we don’t see an increase in cases when vaccinating people?” Pritzker asked rhetorically. “What we want is to put vaccines in people’s arms right away. My focus is to make this vaccine as accessible as possible to all of our residents as soon as shipments enter Illinois.”
Local health departments have allocated 200,030 shots for the first doses. Another 157,230 counties are being issued for second doses. First-dose allocations to local health departments are based on the percentage of the state’s population served by these agencies, according to the IDPH website.
According to the site, the Cook County Department of Public Health, which serves the suburban portion of the county, will receive 45,200 first doses and 18,840 second doses.
• DuPage County is expected to receive 18,400 first doses and 700 second doses.
• Kane County is assigned 10,600 first doses and 2,100 second doses.
• Lake County should get 13,900 first doses and 1,000 seconds.
• McHenry County allocation is set at 6,100 first doses and 500 second doses.
• Will County is in line with 13,800 first doses and 5,540 seconds.
According to the website, the state will allocate the remaining new doses for the week as follows: 5,850 to long-term care centers; 5,700 to federally qualified health centers, safety net hospitals and critically ill hospitals; 63,400 at National Guard posts; 16,160 in retail pharmacies; 6,140 to mobile health and health equipment; 100 in the Illinois Department of Corrections; and 3,500 in dialysis centers.