After the Chicago Department of Public Health announced it was discontinuing the distribution of doses of coronavirus vaccines to Innovative Express Care, claiming that the clinic had “ knowingly misallocated more than 6,000 doses of the vaccine, ” clinic officials are now firing back, saying that they “totally disagree” with the decision.
The company was contracted with the City of Chicago and Chicago Public Schools to vaccinate district employees and teachers, with 1,500 appointments weekly for those individuals.
The clinic says that any doses not used by CPS employees in a given week were then given to another eligible patient for their first dose, which they say caused them to interact with city officials.
“We received vaccine assignments every week and it has always been our intention to have a 100% utilization rate so that every dose we received that week was put into the arm of a qualified patient,” the clinic said in a statement. “It is clear that 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.”
Officials overturned the city’s decision, saying their model of administering vaccine doses to eligible individuals “should be modeled, not punished.”
“The decision by CDPH officials today leaves us baffled, saddened and frankly disappointed in our local government,” the clinic said. “CDPH officials have never made it clear to us as a supplier that we should keep vaccines in the 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 officials’ latest political crisis. “
CDPH announced on Tuesday that it has stopped distributing the coronavirus vaccine to the company. The city says the IEC “administered vaccine to non-CPS individuals without prior authorization,” and that it recovered all vaccines distributed and stored in IEC’s facilities.
The city states that the IEC “ knowingly misallocates ” more than 6,000 doses of the vaccine, including doses assigned to serve as second doses for individuals who had already received their first injections.
Officials called the IEC’s actions “ completely unacceptable behavior. ”
Chicago Public Schools officials say there were never any problems fulfilling the 1,500 new first-dose appointments made available exclusively to district employees each week.
“We are deeply concerned about the allegations related to Innovative Express, and are committed to a smooth transition that ensures minimal disruption to staff,” CPS said in a statement.
For CPS employees who scheduled appointments for Wednesday, those appointments will be rescheduled and new providers will pick up appointments scheduled after that date.
Individuals who had scheduled a second dose appointment at the IEC clinic will be vaccinated at Truman College, according to city officials.