Note: an earlier version of this story stated that five counties were allowed to expand eligibility. Since then, the state has clarified that all counties in Illinois with lower vaccine demand can now expand eligibility at its discretion.
The Illinois Department of Public Health on Friday authorized counties in the state observing low demand for COVID vaccine to begin vaccinating all residents aged 16 and over at its immediate discretion, in order to “address a possible worrying trend of increasing COVID hospitalizations and case rates “.
IDPH said in a statement that it saw the demand for vaccines decrease in several counties “with early signs of unfilled appointments and an increase in vaccine supplies”.
As such, the state is authorizing counties with open consultations and reduced demand to expand the vaccine’s eligibility to use the currently available doses. IDPH noted that residents should contact their local health department to see if they have expanded eligibility.
The state also announced on Friday that it is sending “Rapid Response Vaccination Teams” to five counties where epidemiologists “have determined that there is a need to administer doses quickly to lessen rising trends,” said IDPH. These teams will administer Johnson & Johnson single-dose vaccines to residents in addition to what the counties are already allocated.
These counties are: Carroll, Ogle, Boone, Lee and Whiteside. Details on doses and how to make an appointment are as follows, by IDPH:
“Recent increases in hospital admissions and positive testing are worrisome and we don’t want to follow the same path we saw before and experience a resurgence of the pandemic, which is why Governor Pritzker instructed us to use all of our resources to stop these increases,” he said. IDPH director, Dr. Ngozi Ezike, in a statement.
Illinois has seen a 10-day increase in the seven-day moving average for hospital admissions since March 8, said the IDPH, and the positivity of the COVID-19 test was 3.3% on Friday – up from 2.5% in March 10th.
“While these rates are certainly significantly lower than the peak, they represent a potential early warning sign of a possible resurgence,” said the IDPH.
Chicago officials said on Thursday that the city’s coronavirus metrics also showed “worrying increases” in recent weeks, noting that “most alarmingly”, the daily number of new COVID cases in the city has risen to the “high” category risk “due to five consecutive days of increases.
IDPH on Friday noted that Chicago’s daily case rate has increased by almost 50% since last week, along with a six-day increase in test positivity, while Cook’s suburban district has seen its daily case rate increase by more than 40%, along with nine days of increasing the use of hospital beds.
“We cannot move forward if our metrics are going backwards,” said Ezike. “The vaccine will help us reach the end of the pandemic, but we need to continue to reduce the spread of the virus by wearing a mask, avoiding large crowds, keeping six feet away, getting tested after seeing other people and being vaccinated as soon as possible. fast as possible. “
Governor JB Pritzker announced last week that all Illinois residents over the age of 16 will be eligible to be vaccinated from April 12.
Here is a look at the full vaccine eligibility schedule:
| Date | Eligible Groups |
| December 15, 2020 | Health workers and employees and residents of long-term care institutions |
| January 25, 2021 | Essential frontline workers (including first responders, elementary and high school teachers and other public-facing industries) and residents aged 65 and over |
| February 25, 2021 | Residents with high-risk illnesses or disabilities, aged 16 or over |
| March 22, 2021 | Higher education personnel, government officials and media |
| March 29, 2021 | Restaurant employees, construction workers and religious leaders |
| April 12, 2021 | Any resident aged 16 or over |
All vaccines are made by appointment only, officials said, noting that “making an appointment to receive a vaccine can take time”. Newly qualified workers can make appointments at “more than 900 locations on the state’s network of providers,” said Pritzker.
For a complete view of where and how you can make an appointment in Illinois or where you can receive information about vaccines for your area, click here.