NOTE: The Cook County Health Department is expected to discuss the release of the form in a press conference. Watch live in the player above
Residents of suburban Cook County can now register for coronavirus vaccine updates, including when they can receive their first shots and where Illinois continues to roll out to administer doses.
According to the Cook County Department of Public Health website, the new registration form will be used “to gather information from individuals who want to receive regular updates on where and when to get the COVID-19 vaccination.”
While the department notes that vaccine doses are limited and are currently being administered to priority populations, including health professionals and residents of long-term care facilities and staff, it asks any resident who “is not affiliated with any health organization of any type” to complete the survey.
Meanwhile, organizations with staff currently eligible for the vaccine can register here to receive “updates on when their staff can get the COVID-19 vaccine.”
The form follows one released by suburban Lake County last month. Lake County health officials have created a COVID-19 portal called “AllVax” that allows residents to sign up for coronavirus updates, schedule appointments, and register for the vaccine.
Last week, the city of Chicago also launched its first massive COVID-19 vaccination site for health workers, as it continues to roll out thousands of doses of vaccines against the deadly coronavirus.
But you can’t just walk into the vaccination site – also known as a ‘drop-off point’ or ‘pod’ – to get an injection. You need an appointment and only those who meet certain criteria can get an appointment at this time.
Employees who meet the criteria – Arwady cited examples, including a dental office, an outpatient practice, a school nurse, a funeral director, or some other type of health worker in Chicago – will first have to ensure their practice is registered with the city.
The city’s website has a survey for health care providers to review the practice, staff and more information in detail before city officials begin the process of either getting doses of the vaccine directly to the practice or by making appointments for employees on city sites or locations possibly run by pharmacy partners or hospitals.
On New Year’s Eve, 143,924 Illinois residents were given the COVID vaccine, according to a spokeswoman for Illinois Governor JB Pritzker.
Those numbers stem from growing fears that the slow rollout of the vaccine could prolong the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. According to a recent study by NBC News, the federal government would need to vaccinate 3 million people a day to achieve its goal of vaccinating 80% of the population by the end of June.
At the end of December, only 2 million people had received the first dose, and at that rate it would take 10 years to reach the 80% vaccination threshold.
As concerns grew, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot criticized the federal government, saying it could take more than a year to deliver the vaccine to all city residents at the current rate of dose shipments.
In a social media post, Lightfoot said on Saturday that the city’s health department has administered more than 95% of the vaccine doses it has received from the federal government to date.
In the tweet, Lightfoot said that at the current dose-allocation rate, it would take 71 weeks to fully vaccinate all city residents.
‘We need more vaccine. Now, ”she said.