CDPH said Innovative Express Care, located at 2400 N. Ashland Avenue, has “knowingly misallocated 6,000 doses of vaccines intended for CPS employees.” As a result, CDPH said it will reclaim any vaccines distributed and stored at IEC.
Innovative Express Care issued a statement denying the allegations, claiming that the so-called misassigned doses were not used by CPS at the end of each week and were given as first doses to seniors, primary care workers and other qualified patients.
An IEC spokesperson said in a statement: “All vaccine doses not used by CPS at the end of each week went to a different eligible patient for their first dose. We always made sure there were sufficient allocations for additional doses for all CPS employees. “
IEC said the city’s decision made them “sad” and “disappointed,” adding that “CDPH officials have never made it clear to us as a supplier that we should keep vaccines in a refrigerator for people waiting for a second dose.”
CDPH said it has identified new suppliers to acquire and administer the vaccine for those who will receive a dose through Innovative Express Care.
CDPH said CPS staff with appointments will be moved to the foreseeable future on Wednesday, March 24, and reports are underway. CPS personnel with existing appointments on Thursday, March 25 and beyond will be further vaccinated at the same CPS high school site where they were originally scheduled.
But for Renee LaBuda it means a new appointment.
“My second dose was scheduled for Friday, so now I’m in a panic and don’t know what to do,” she said.
LaBuda received a call and message that her appointment with the IEC vaccine had been canceled and that she had been given a website and phone number to call.
“I was on hold for 10 minutes and they didn’t know,” said LaBuda. “I said my appointment at Innovative Express had been canceled. She said I don’t know what you’re talking about and she hung up. ‘
LaBuda said he tried the song again, but with no luck.
“I have two days, two days to get them somewhere on the second dose appointment,” said LaBuda. “I really hope someone helps me, really.”
The Chicago’s Teachers Union called what happened “a multi-level failure of the people who run our school district.”
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Full statement from Innovative Express Care
We strongly disagree with the Chicago Department of Public Health’s allegations that vaccine misallocation is intended for CPS personnel.
We proudly operated four CPS vaccination sites. As of last week, every CPS employee had been given the opportunity to get vaccinated because of our ability to distribute vaccines effectively. CPS highlighted the news of an effective partnership at a CPS event last week celebrating vaccine distribution. In the official press release, CPS officials stated that a significant number of CPS employees have received vaccinations as of March 17, 2021. Innovative Express Care is proud to have vaccinated thousands of CPS employees at one of four locations and many other CPS employees at our clinic.
All vaccine doses not used by CPS at the end of each week went to another eligible patient for their first dose. We always ensured that there were sufficient allocations for additional doses for all CPS employees. We got vaccine assignments every week, and our goal has always been to have a 100% utilization rate so that every dose we received that week was put into the arm of a qualified patient. Clearly, we took this idealistic view very seriously, which meant that doses intended for CPS workers actually went to seniors, primary care workers, and other qualified patients. We have never deviated from the commitment to CPS employees, nor to other qualified individuals.
Today’s decision by CDPH officials leaves us baffled, saddened and frankly disappointed in our local government. CDPH officials have never made it clear to us as a supplier that we should keep vaccines in a refrigerator for people waiting for a second dose. We have previously followed the nation’s commitment to getting as many vaccines as possible into the arms of eligible patients as soon as possible. Our mission was to vaccinate as many eligible patients as possible as soon as possible, and not according to the whims of the city official’s latest political crisis.
To be clear, Innovative Express Care has vaccinated eligible individuals in a tiered approach as mandated by the City of Chicago and the State of Illinois since January. We learned along the way with other healthcare providers, always adhering to medical ethics. We have helped numerous community organizations by proactively planning eligible individuals to live in medically disadvantaged Black and Brown communities. Our history as recorded in countless media accounts and our patients’ own appreciation on social media are evidence of our positive impact. Effective distribution of vaccines should be modeled, not penalized.
We have served our community since the start of this pandemic, and we will continue to do so through testing. We are deeply disappointed in the city’s decision to remove us as a vaccine supplier. Chicago needs more vaccination sites that actually distribute their doses among eligible patients, not less.
Full statement from Chicago Public Schools
Since the CPS vaccination program opened in full last month, we’ve been able to consistently offer at least 1,500 first-dose appointments to all staff members every week, while rapidly extending eligibility to all employees. We are deeply concerned about the Innovative Express allegations and are committed to a smooth transition that ensures minimal disruption to staff. We’ve teamed up with the Chicago Department of Public Health to find a new vaccination partner to start operating our vaccination sites next Thursday, and Innovative Express’s actions so far haven’t impacted our ability to offer appointments.
Full statement from Chicago Teachers Union
After listening to the mayor and the CPS leadership tell us that it was impossible to vaccinate teachers before returning to personal instruction, and then about how ‘robust’ their plan was, we now discover that 6,000 doses of the vaccine have been taken and given to others in lieu of educators and CPS employees – many of whom are some of the most medically vulnerable people who work in our schools. A number of teachers and staff have canceled appointments for less than 24 hours. It is a failure, on several levels, of the people who run our school district.
“CPS and the Mayor canceled leave because they thought vaccinations were being offered to our members, and launched a smear campaign accusing them of non-compliance in receiving and reporting doses. But this, plus Loretto Hospital, is causing two scandals in a matter of days. Before CPS cancels someone’s leave, they may want to check who does what with vaccine doses intended for the employees in our schools. And Chicago City Council should call for hearings on how the city is working with organizations to serve this purpose. potentially life-saving medication.
Full statement from Chicago Dept. of Public Health
The Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) has made it clear from the start of the vaccine’s introduction that all providers who receive COVID-19 vaccine doses must strictly adhere to all CDPH guidelines and reporting requirements regarding the administration of vaccines doses.
If CDPH hears about a vaccine that is not being administered properly, CDPH will act quickly to determine if the distribution or administration guidelines have been correctly followed. If necessary, CDPH will interrupt or discontinue the supply of new doses to health care providers who are not adhering to the guidelines. When we do this, our first priority is to minimize disruption to the vaccination process and residents on a vaccination appointment.
To this end, CDPH today discontinued distribution of the vaccine to Innovative Express Care (“IEC”). IEC signed a contract with Chicago Public Schools to administer vaccine to CPS employees. CDPH has since learned that IEC administered vaccines to non-CPS individuals without prior consent. As a result, CDPH will reclaim all vaccine that is distributed and stored at IEC according to standard secure transport protocols.
Based on CPDH’s review of the IEC’s vaccine assignments and administration, we found that they knowingly misassigned more than 6,000 vaccine doses, including the use of vaccine assigned for second doses for first dose appointments. This is completely unacceptable behavior.
We have already identified new suppliers to acquire and administer the vaccine for those who will receive a dose through Innovative Express Care.
Continuity of our activities is our highest priority. CPS staff with appointments on Wednesday, March 24 will be moved to the near future and reports are pending. CPS personnel with existing appointments on Thursday, March 25 and beyond will be further vaccinated at the same CPS high school site where they were originally scheduled.
IEC will no longer give vaccinations for the first dose, and people can visit Zocdoc to find available appointments. Anyone scheduled for a second dose appointment through the Innovative Express clinic will be vaccinated at a dedicated clinic set up for them at Truman College. These individuals will be contacted and given the following steps for scheduling their appointment.
Since we started our vaccination efforts, we have delivered more than 1 million doses from more than 200 providers in the city, with a special focus on those at highest risk of serious illness from COVID-19. We will continue to work closely with providers who vaccinate in accordance with that mission.
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