More than 3 million Illinois residents are expected to be eligible for the coronavirus vaccine in the next phase of the state rollout.
Gov. JB Pritzker said he plans to announce sometime this week when the state will enter Phase 1B, although some areas may already be allowed to do so. However, moving to the next stage does not mean that those who qualify during the first stage still cannot receive the vaccine.
I expect to make a formal announcement in Illinois later this week
will move to Phase 1B statewide, “Pritzker said during his coronavirus update Monday.” Of course, anyone in Stage 1A who has chosen not to get vaccinated can always sign up during a subsequent round – this will pass as we go along, we won’t leave any vaccine on the shelves. “
Phase 1B will focus on residents 65 and older and “frontline essential workers”, including first responders, educators such as teachers and support staff, childcare workers, supermarket workers, mail carriers and more.
The Illinois age requirement is 10 years lower than the recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, “to reduce COVID-19 mortality and limit community spread in Black and Brown communities,” the governor said.
Phase 1B will encompass approximately 3.2 million Illinois residents, according to the state.
Illinois as a whole has administered approximately 334,939 vaccine doses as of Sunday evening.
“We are making significant progress in Phase 1A and I appreciate the hard work of health care providers across the state to get through this phase as quickly as possible,” said Pritzker. In some communities, they have even been able to substantially complete Phase 1A. IDPH allows any local health department in that position to move into the early stages of Phase 1B, as we want to ensure that every available vaccine is delivered quickly to the priority groups we have drawn up. “
Chicago health officials said they expect Phase 1B to begin in the city in February or March.
“A lot depends on how quickly the vaccine gets to us,” said Dr. Allison Arwady, Commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health. “We now get about 32,000 doses of first doses of vaccine per week. Think how many people there are over 65 – 370,000 – how many key workers – hundreds of thousands, 150,000, just in education – there will be some patience here. But I would expect that we probably going to start, you know, February to March kind of, and then we’ll continue to vaccinate, you know, for the next few months. ‘
Here’s an overview of who will be included in Phase 1B:
- Residents aged 65 and over
- Primary care workers, meaning “residents who are at higher risk for COVID-19 exposure because of their work duties, often because they cannot work from home, and / or they must work closely with others without being able to distance themselves socially. contains:
- First responders: Fire brigade, police, 911 workers, security personnel, school officers
- Education: Teachers, school principals, student counseling, student resources, childcare
- Food and agriculture: Processing, plants, veterinary health, animal husbandry, animal care
- Manufacturing: Industrial production of goods for distribution to retailers, wholesalers or other manufacturers
- Corrections workers and prisoners: Prison officers, juvenile detention staff, personal support workers, inmates
- USPS employees
- Public transport employees: Flight crew, bus drivers, train drivers, taxi drivers, para-transit drivers, personal support, ride sharing services
- Supermarket employees: Baggers, cashiers, stockers, pick-up, customer service
- Shelters and nursery: Homeless shelter, women’s shelter, adult day / walk-in program, sheltered workshop, psychosocial rehab