A new mass vaccination site scheduled to open in Des Plaines this weekend, becoming the first large-scale facility to administer the Johnson & Johnson vaccine in Illinois, began receiving consultations Thursday afternoon.
The Cook County Health Department will open its fourth large-scale vaccination site at 1155 E. Oakton St. in Des Plaines on Friday or Saturday, pending the arrival of the vaccine, according to a statement.
Residents can start making required appointments at the new location at 1pm on Thursday. Appointments can be made from 7:00 am to 7:00 pm, Monday through Friday at vaccine.cookcountyil.gov or by calling (833) 308-1988.
To find out how you can sign up for a COVID vaccine appointment in Illinois, click here.
Cook County officials said they hope to deliver about 3,500 doses a day once the vaccination site is “fully optimized” and the vaccine is available. Authorities noted that the Des Planes site will be the first large-scale facility across the state to administer the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
“This is a critical moment in our fight against COVID-19 and the provision of all three vaccines approved by the FDA ensures that our residents have all the vaccine options currently available,” said Cook County Council President Toni Preckwinkle. “The Johnson & Johnson vaccine has proven to be safe and effective in protecting people from serious illness and death. The fact that it is a single dose vaccine is exciting, as it allows people to protect themselves in just one visit. “
More than 18,000 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine are due to arrive in Cook County on Thursday, the health department said on Wednesday.
Johnson & Johnson vaccine shipments began on Monday, with Chicago and Illinois hoping to receive an estimated dose count of over 100,000 by the end of the week.
The Illinois Department of Public Health said doses are expected across the state, with about 22,000 planned for Chicago and another 83,000 for the remaining regions.
More than 90% of the newly authorized vaccine will go to mass vaccination sites across the state, with the remaining doses sent to other providers, officials said. IDPH noted that the total doses do not include those going to Chicago, which will receive its own allocation.
In addition to Des Plaines’ appointments, more than 100,000 appointments for seniors were also opened on Thursday morning for the next United Center, with plans to start vaccinations next week.
Illinois announced the launch of the Des Plaines website on Wednesday, along with another location set to open in Quincy.
“With our new operations in Des Plaines and Quincy, Illinois, we are now operating 18 state-supported mass vaccination sites, in addition to a network of more than 800 vaccination sites across the state, all trained on one goal: to vaccinate as many as many people as possible, as quickly as possible, ”said Governor JB Pritzker in a statement. “One in six Illinois residents has already received their first dose of the vaccine, and as the federal government increases deliveries to Illinois to more than 100,000 a day later this month, IDPH and our 97 local health departments are ready to face the moment. In the meantime, I encourage all Illinois residents to wear their masks and remain vigilant as we move to the other side of the COVID-19 pandemic. “