The I-Team examined the question “Where are the vaccines?”
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Monday was nicknamed “COVID-D-Day” after the pivotal beginning of the end of World War II.
Tuesday, a day later for some hospitals in the Chicago suburbs, the D is a disappointment to this day. Because the vaccines that arrived in Illinois Monday have not yet arrived at their hospitals or the arms of their health workers.
Yesterday there was a video of Governor JB Pritzker inspecting the vaccine warehouse as some hospitals in Chicagoland prepared to receive those vaccines – expecting to receive them and then vaccinate their frontline personnel the next day.
The governor said those hospitals were under the false impression that they would receive dry ice-packed boxes full of vaccines to immediately begin inoculating their front-line workers.
And then there was an internal memo from the University of Chicago that said, “We have not yet received a COVID-19 vaccine from the Chicago Department of Public Health, which is responsible for allocating and distributing the vaccine to the Hyde Park- campus of UChicago Medicine. to believe that Thursday afternoon at the earliest we can start our employee vaccination program. However, this may change depending on when the vaccine arrives. “
Edward Hospital in Naperville planned to begin vaccinating workers on Tuesday, but was instead notified that the shipment had been delayed.
“The big question is whether the cold chain will be broken, so the vaccine has to be stored at -80 degrees, which is basically the temperature of dry ice, so when that vaccine is thawed, we only have 5 days to use it. it is critical that we get that vaccine quickly as soon as it arrives because we don’t know whether it will be frozen or not, ”said Jonathan Pinsky, Medical Director of Infection Control, Edward Hospital.
The governor defended himself.
‘They have not been delayed. In fact, none of them had a delivery scheduled. Before today there was no delay for any of them, ”he said.
“I think they were overly excited that they weren’t … they were overly excited. The IHA, the Illinois Hospital Association that worked with us and their hospitals, along with the individual hospitals, were responsible for planning when those things were done. Some of them are undoubtedly more excited than others, and you know, turn off the fact that they would receive them when they were actually unplanned. ”, added Pritzker.
Governor Pritzker promised in his 2:30 pm daily briefing that for the next 24 to 72 hours, vaccines will be delivered across Illinois through what he called an “excellent logistics team.”
After the Chicago area hospitals continued to publicly note that they have not yet received any vaccine vials … about an hour later, an additional written statement came from Governor Pritzker’s spokesman saying, “Everything is on track and progressing. according to plan.”
A press release from Edward-Elmhurst Heath sent Tuesday evening reported it will receive the COVID-19 vaccine Thursday morning.
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