COVID 19 vaccine appointments for the United Center can now be scheduled at Zocdoc.com/vaccine and by phone, while a new site in Des Plaines also accepts new appointments.
A total of 110,000 appointments have been made available for the United Center’s massive vaccination site. The first appointments opened Thursday at 8:30 a.m. for seniors. After the senior registration period, anyone eligible for a vaccine as part of the Phase 1B + group can begin scheduling appointments on Sunday, March 7 at 4 p.m.
As of 3 p.m., 27,819 seniors had signed up for appointments at the United Center.
To register for an appointment at the United Center, visit www.zocdoc.com/vaccine or call the Multilingual Hotline at (312) 746-4835 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday.
“I think it’s a fairer system to put all availability in one place, rather than having hidden pockets where you need to work the system or work your connections,” said Oliver Kharraz, founder and CEO of Zocdoc.
The Chicago Department of Public Health and the Chicago Fire Department are partnering in a pilot program that will bring vaccines to seniors. Paramedics will administer the vaccines to residents ’homes if they cannot travel to a vaccination site. Those interested can complete a survey at: https://redcap.link/MobileCOVIDVax.
While tens of thousands of appointments are available, organizers call for patience, as massive demand threatens to overwhelm the system; the online registration portal crashed during the first half hour it was open.
“Some people couldn’t do it right away right away, you know, just a sign of the demand for appointments,” said Dr. Allison Arwady, a commissioner with the Chicago Department of Public Health. “Wow, you know, in about 20-30 minutes, everything was working again and it was going smoothly.”
For Paul Penzick, 70, signing up was a breeze; it only took him about ten minutes to register for his appointment when he tried it around nine in the morning
“I was expecting a nightmare and it just flew,” he said. “It doesn’t relieve me so much. I don’t feel frustrated anymore.”
Gabriel Alvavara drove from Prospect Heights to the United Center site. He came looking for a number to call to make sure a slot for the site opening next week. He has problems with diabetes and cholesterol.
“I’m working at Goodwill and I’m scared because everyone has a second one and I need it,” Alvavara said.
At 8:30 a.m., Zocdoc was up and running for people 65 and older to schedule their first vaccine at the United Center. Alvavara called the multilingual hotline 200 times without luck.
ABC7 tried to make an appointment with Zocdoc, just to send it in circles.
“I don’t know what happened right now in Chicago, but I’m looking for someone to help me,” Alvavara said.
Alvavara was able to access the phone line at 10 a.m. and was suspended.
An organization trying to help immigrants and undocumented people register online also said the system was frustrating. The alternative, calling the phone line, was even worse.
“We were waiting for so long, you know, 20, 30, 40 minutes of waiting trying to catch someone,” Sarah Walker of Right 2 Family Vaccine Campaign said. And in the end, they never got to the hotline.
Dr. Arwady said the system is equipped to handle about 600 calls at any one time, so the amount of demand will affect how easy or difficult it is to pass.
“But keep calling,” he said. “There are appointments and then we’ll work to get people involved.”
Several people arrived at the United Center and were confused by all the information over the past few weeks and days.
Ferry Jordan thought she had an appointment and could be vaccinated on Thursday, showing up only to be withdrawn.
“But it’s okay with all this massive vaccination,” Jordan said. “I can understand it. It’s not the easiest thing to do, but you ask questions and keep trying.”
Officials stressed that appointments cannot be made on the site and must be registered online or by phone.
Zocdoc expects UC’s 110,000 vaccine appointments to be booked Thursday, with demand estimated at 300 bookings per minute, or more than 18,000 per hour.
“I think there’s a good chance all 110,000 will go,” Kharraz said. “I think there’s still a lot more demand for vaccine than supply.”
ABC 7 has learned that a portion of those appointments, up to 19%, will be dedicated to the call center. But some want the system to do more to target communities of color.
“A weighted lottery system,” suggested Dr. Marina Del Rios of the Vaccine Corp Partnership. “Or, at the very least, have a list of priority people. If you’re in those particular zip codes and in those particular communities, you’ll get the first comments.”
MIRAR | The Des Plaines mass vaccination site will open on Thursday
Located in a former K-Mart store, the new mass vaccination site in Des Plaines is one of the largest, if not the largest, of the Northwest suburbs. It opens on Thursday and officials expect vaccinations to begin on Friday or Saturday for Phase 1B people.
Appointments for the Des Plaines Mass Vaccination Site can be made starting Thursday at 1 p.m. at vaccine.cookcountyil.gov or by phone at (833) 308-1988. The site will be open Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle joined other public officials as she toured this new location on 1155 East Oakton Street in Des Plaines on Wednesday.
The site backed by the National Guard will be the first in Cook County to use the new Johnson & Johnson vaccine. The county expects 18,000 doses of J&J from the federal government to arrive Thursday. The goal is to vaccinate up to 3,500 people a day.
“Because Johnson & Johnson is a single-dose vaccine, patients don’t have to worry about scheduling a second appointment,” said Israel Rocha, Jr., CEO of Cook County Health. “This is an advantage that will allow us to make sure we can see even more people through places like today.”
“We will continue to ask for patience in this vaccination process. As we know, the supply of vaccines has been limited and although it is improving, we still cannot meet the demand,” Preckwinkle said.
This Des Plaines site is the fourth largest-scale vaccination center in suburban Cook County, joining facilities in Tinley Park, River Grove and South Holland. This is in addition to sites supported by the National Guard at various health centers in Cook County.
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