CDPH said Innovative Express Care, located at 2400 N. Ashland Avenue, “maliciously assigned” 6,000 doses of vaccines to CPS employees. As a result, CDPH said it will recover all vaccines distributed and stored at the IEC.
Innovative Express Care issued a statement denying the allegations, stating that the so-called misallocated doses were not used by CPS at the end of each week and were given as first doses to the elderly, front-line workers and other skilled patients.
An IEC spokesman said in a statement: “All doses of vaccine that CPS did not use at the end of each week went to another patient eligible for the first dose. We always made sure there were enough dose allocations. for all CPS employees. “
The IEC said the city’s decision left them “saddened” and “disappointed,” adding that “CDPH officials never made it clear to us as a supplier that we should store vaccines in the refrigerator. for people waiting for second doses “.
CDPH said it has identified new providers to take over and administer the vaccine for those scheduled to receive a dose using Innovative Express Care.
CDPH said CPS staff with appointments on Wednesday, March 24 will be rescheduled for the near future and notifications are ongoing. CPS staff with existing appointments on Thursday, March 25 and then will continue to be vaccinated at the same site as CPS High School where it was originally scheduled.
But for Renee LaBuda, it means another revolt.
“My second dose was scheduled for Friday, so I’m panicking now and I don’t know what to do,” he said.
LaBuda received a call and a message was canceled telling her the appointment with the IEC vaccine and she was given a website and a phone number to call.
“I waited 10 minutes and they didn’t know it,” LaBuda said. “I said my appointment to Innovative Express was canceled. He said I don’t know what you’re talking about and he hung up on me.”
The Buddha said he tried the number again, but no luck.
“I have two days, two days to get them during the second dose appointment somewhere,” LaBuda said. “I’m, I hope someone helps me, I really do.”
Chicago’s Teachers Union described what happened “as a multi-level failure on the part of the people who run our school district.”
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Complete Innovative Express Care Statement
We do not fully agree with allegations by the Chicago Department of Public Health that a misallocation of vaccines is intended for CPS staff.
We have proudly operated four CPS vaccination sites. Since last week, all CPS staff members had had the opportunity to be vaccinated because of our ability to effectively operate a vaccine distribution effort. CPS highlighted the news of an effective partnership during a CPS event last week that celebrated the distribution of vaccination. In the official press release, CPS officials stated that a significant number of CPS employees received vaccines as of March 17, 2021. Innovative Express Care is proud to have vaccinated thousands of CPS employees in one of four sites and many other CPS employees at our clinic.
All doses of vaccine that CPS did not use at the end of each week were directed to another patient eligible for the first dose. We always made sure there were enough additional dose assignments for all CPS employees. We received vaccine assignments each week and our intention has always been to have a 100% utilization rate so that every dose we receive is put into the arms of a qualified patient that week. Clearly, we took this idealistic view very seriously, which meant that the doses intended for CPS employees went to the elderly, front-line essential workers, and other skilled patients. We never strayed from our commitment to CPS employees or other qualified people.
The decision of CDPH officials today leaves us baffled, saddened and frankly disappointed by our local government. CDPH officials never made it clear to us as a supplier that we should store vaccines in the refrigerator for people waiting for second doses. Rather, we have been following the nation’s commitment to getting the maximum number of vaccines in the arms of eligible patients, as soon as possible. Our mission was to vaccinate as many eligible patients as quickly as possible, and not on the whims of the last political crisis of the city official.
To be clear, Innovative Express Care has vaccinated eligible people in a phased approach dictated by the city of Chicago and the state of Illinois since January. We have been learning from other health care providers along the way, always following medical ethics. We have helped numerous community organizations by proactively programming eligible people living in black and brown communities with health care. Our past history recorded in numerous media accounts and the voices of gratitude of our patients on social media are a testament to our positive impact. Effective distribution of vaccines should be modeled and not penalized.
We have served our community since the beginning of this pandemic and will continue to do so through testing. We are deeply disappointed by the city’s decision to retire as a vaccine provider. Chicago needs more vaccination sites that are distributing their doses to eligible patients, not less.
Full statement from Chicago public schools
Since the CPS vaccination program fully opened last month, we have been able to consistently offer at least 1,500 first-dose appointments to all staff each week, while rapidly expanding eligibility to include all employees. We are deeply concerned about complaints related to Innovative Express and are committed to a smooth transition that ensures minimal disruption to staff. We have been working with the Chicago Department of Public Health to identify a new vaccination partner that will begin operating our vaccination sites this Thursday, and Innovative Express actions have not affected our ability to provide appointments so far.
Full statement from the Chicago Teachers Union
After hearing the mayor and CPS leadership, we were told that vaccinating teachers before returning to in-person instruction was impossible, and that their plan was “robust,” now we learn that they have been taken. and administered 6,000 doses of the vaccine to others instead of educators and CPS workers, many of whom are some of the most medically vulnerable people working in our schools. Some teachers and staff have canceled scheduled appointments in less than 24 hours. It is a failure, on several levels, of the people who run our school district.
“CPS and the mayor have been canceling the permits because they believed that vaccines were being offered to our members and started a defamation campaign accusing them of non-compliance in receiving and communicating doses. But this, in addition to the Loretto Hospital, makes two scandals in question of Before CPS cancels the discharge of anyone, you may want to do an audit on who is doing what with the doses of vaccine meant for the workers of our schools. of Chicago should ask for hearings on how the city partners with organizations to administer this life-saving drug.
Full statement from the Chicago Department of Public Health
The Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH), since the beginning of the vaccine launch, has made it clear that all providers receiving doses of COVID-19 vaccine must strictly comply with all CDPH guidelines and information requirements. on the administration of the vaccine received. dose.
If the CDPH is aware of any vaccine that is not being administered properly, the CDPH will act quickly to determine if the distribution or administration guidelines have been followed correctly. When necessary, CDPH will pause or stop delivering new doses to suppliers who do not comply with the guidelines. When we do this, our first priority is to minimize the disruption of the vaccination process and residents who have a pre-vaccination appointment.
To this end, today, CDPH has stopped distributing the vaccine to Innovative Express Care (“IEC”). IEC signed a contract with Chicago public schools to administer the vaccine to CPS employees. CDPH has since learned that the IEC administered vaccine to people who did not belong to CPS without prior authorization. As a result, CDPH will recover all vaccines distributed and stored at the IEC in accordance with standard safe transport protocols.
Based on CPDH’s review of IEC vaccine assignments and administrations, we determined that they were able to misallocate more than 6,000 vaccine doses, including the use of second-dose vaccine for first-dose appointments. . This is totally unacceptable behavior.
We have already identified new providers to take over and administer the vaccine for those scheduled to receive a dose using Innovative Express Care.
Continuity of operations is our top priority. CPS staff with appointments on Wednesday, March 24 will be rescheduled for the near future and notifications are ongoing. CPS staff with existing appointments on Thursday, March 25 and then will continue to be vaccinated at the same site as CPS High School where it was originally scheduled.
The IEC will no longer make first-dose vaccines and people can visit Zocdoc to find available appointments. Anyone who is scheduled for an appointment with a second dose, even if the Innovative Express clinic will be vaccinated at a special clinic set up for them at Truman College. These people are contacted and provided with the following steps to schedule the appointment.
Since we began our vaccination efforts, we have administered more than one million doses to more than 200 providers across the city, with special attention to people at higher risk for severe COVID-19 disease. We will continue to work closely with vaccine providers in accordance with this mission.
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