Illinois has now opened vaccinations to residents 16 and up statewide as of April 12, though outside of Chicago.
The number of Illinois residents who have been fully vaccinated — receiving both of the Pfizer or Moderna required shots, or Johnson & Johnson’s single shot — is 22.4% of the total population as of Sunday.
If you’re curious about which vaccines have been authorized by the FDA and where some other vaccine candidates stand, check out a breakdown here. The two vaccines available since December — Pfizer and Moderna — were 90% effective after two doses, the CDC reported.
And recently, the CDC issued updated its guidance for fully vaccinated Americans, saying that traveling both domestically and internationally was low risk. Here’s what to know about vaccinated travel.
Or you may be wondering how many people are eligible because of preexisting conditions? Search for your county here.
Here’s what you need to know about COVID-19 vaccines in Illinois:
Illinois vaccine eligibility opens to all 16 and up
Illinois has now opened eligibility to everyone 16 and older as of April 12.
The expanded eligibility covers suburban Cook County and the state’s other 101 counties, most of which already have opened to that age group. The city of Chicago, which gets its own vaccine supply from the federal government, isn’t following suit until April 19, which meets President Joe Biden’s latest goal for universal adult eligibility.
What to know about your vaccine card: Why it’s important, how to keep it safe, what happens if it’s lost and more
As vaccinations become more widely available for people in the United States and travel starts picking up, many people have started sharing their simple white vaccination cards on social media as prized new possessions.
With some destinations, cruise lines and venues already requiring travelers to provide proof of vaccination against COVID-19, keeping that record is key.
Here’s everything you need to know about your vaccine record, why it’s important and how to keep it safe.
Illinois AG Kwame Raoul warns residents not to post vaccination cards online and to look out for COVID-19 ‘scams and frauds’
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul warned against “scams and fraud” associated with COVID-19 vaccination cards, and said his office is looking into reports of fake cards being sold online.
Raoul urged residents to report any potentially counterfeit vaccination cards to his office. He added that people should avoid websites claiming to sell doses of the vaccine, as well as phone and text offers for the vaccine.
With some people sharing news that they got vaccinated on social media, Raoul also advised the public to avoid sharing pictures of vaccination cards online.
Amid confusion, Chicagoans traveling to downstate Quincy, elsewhere to get early inoculation access
It’s that dreaded quest for the vaccine that has led Chicagoans to discover the Quincy site — and others with available appointments elsewhere in the state — via word of mouth and through avid social media collectives. Especially active is the Chicago Vaccine Hunters group on Facebook, which trades not just vaccination logistics but also tips on places to eat and stay in Quincy.
The long drive — or Amtrak ride on the Illinois Zephyr, or plane trip via Cape Air out of O’Hare International Airport — to acquire the precious juice was a drawback, group members agreed. But the fact the Quincy site has had through much of March a steady supply of J&J vaccine, meaning no return trip would be necessary, made the mileage less painful.
Illinois expands COVID-19 vaccine eligibility to additional workers including higher education and government staff, media and religious leaders
Illinois announced it would expand COVID-19 vaccine eligibility to several additional groups of essential workers, including higher education staff, government employees and religious leaders, ahead of the April 12 date when all Illinoisans 16 and older outside of Chicago will be able to get the vaccine.
Beginning March 22, higher education staff, government employees and members of the media will be eligible for the shots. Food and beverage workers, construction trade workers and religious leaders will be eligible one week later on March 29.
Chicago to begin vaccinating those with health conditions and remaining essential workers on March 29, Mayor Lori Lightfoot says
The city of Chicago will greatly expand the number of people eligible for vaccination shots later this month, Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced.
Under the move to phase 1C, Chicago residents who have medical conditions or are essential workers who haven’t yet qualified for the coronavirus vaccine will become eligible for the shot starting March 29, Lightfoot said. That will mean most of the city’s population will be allowed a vaccine, Chicago public health commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady said while tempering the announcement with caution over limited availability.
All CPS teachers now eligible for COVID-19 vaccines at district sites, with aim to have all employees get first dose by the end of March
All Chicago Public Schools employees and vendors are now eligible to get COVID-19 vaccines at sites run by the district, it announced on the one-year anniversary of statewide school closures.
CPS CEO Janice Jackson said the goal is to have all staff members to receive a vaccination by the end of March.
What is a vaccine passport and will you need one to travel?
When travelers venture back out, many — especially those flying overseas — will need to manage new requirements to prove they’ve tested negative for COVID-19 or received a vaccine.
Travel industry trade groups, airlines and other organizations are developing so-called vaccine passports to make it easier to navigate changing rules. Most are in early stages or only used in certain destinations, though their creators say they are working to expand use. What’s less clear is whether any will emerge as a standard accepted broadly worldwide.
In the meantime, here’s what you need to know.
Illinois launches plan with some pharmacies to provide COVID vaccinations as nursing homes raise concerns over ongoing need
Nursing home residents may again face a dangerous delay in getting the COVID-19 vaccine, officials fear, due to inadequate plans to provide ongoing vaccinations.
State officials said Tuesday that they have launched a plan for pharmacies that serve long-term care facilities to provide shots to new nursing homes residents — but initially had just eight pharmacies to handle roughly 1,200 long-term care facilities. Chicago gets a separate federal supply of vaccine, and was expected to develop its own provider network, state officials said.
But now that a federal program to vaccinate nursing home residents has wound down, managers worry that there will be a lack of timely shots for new patients and workers. They fear it’s a replay of last year, when nursing homes were left to fend for themselves and had severe shortages of protective equipment and testing.
Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson doses are available in Illinois. Can you choose? Should you?
With Illinois expecting more coronavirus vaccine doses in coming weeks, some people may soon face a choice: which vaccine to get.
Vaccination appointments are still tough to come by, leading many people to take whichever vaccine they can get first, whether it’s been made by Pfizer, Moderna or Johnson & Johnson. Health experts are imploring people not to wait for one type of vaccine, saying they’re all effective at preventing death and hospitalization, and that rapid, widespread vaccination is needed to control the spread of COVID-19.
But with the newly approved Johnson & Johnson vaccine now available in Illinois, some people are actively seeking it out, while others are trying to avoid it — a task that’s easier in some places than others.
Doctors work to dispel COVID-19 vaccine misinformation: ‘There is no evidence that the vaccine can lead to loss of fertility’
Dr. Eve Feinberg proactively brings up the COVID-19 vaccine with patients who are hoping to get pregnant, in order to get ahead of misinformation about the inoculation.
Dr. Jennifer Hirshfeld-Cytron has written blog posts with headlines straight to the point, like “The COVID-19 vaccine won’t cause infertility.”
Doctors who specialize in pregnancy and fertility are coming out in full force against vaccine-related misinformation that falsely connects the vaccine and infertility, educating their patients of childbearing age and urging them to educate themselves with reliable sources.
“I very much feel as a physician, as a leader, we have to be vaccine ambassadors and educate the public,” said Feinberg, an associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Northwestern’s medical school. “We need to really dispel a lot of anti-vaccine propaganda out there.”
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists last month put out a statement assuring patients that “there is no evidence that the vaccine can lead to loss of fertility.”
As COVID-19 vaccines arrive in Chicago’s hard-hit Latino communities, hope is revived but outreach to Spanish-speakers and skeptics still needed
Despite efforts by the city to make the shots available to every resident of areas most affected by the virus, regardless of whether they meet other standards to be vaccinated, some Latinos are still having trouble getting the vaccine while those in other hard-hit communities continue to wait for it.
Community leaders say hesitancy about the vaccine plays a role in keeping some Latinos from getting inoculated even where it is available. But language and technology barriers also are discouraging people from seeking an appointment or even learning more about the vaccine.
Where are you in the vaccine line? We charted out who is eligible and who is not in as much detail as we could find.
When Illinois enters phase 1c, the Illinois Department of Health estimates 900,000 more essential workers will be eligible. That will include large groups of restaurant workers, construction workers, accountants, lawyers and other types of workers.
The Tribune charted all of the vaccine groups by phase to give a little more context to just who might be next in line for the vaccine.
With doses in short supply, thousands of frustrated COVID-19 vaccine seekers are turning to social media for help and getting it
In search of a COVID-19 vaccine for her dad, Amber Dow was hitting one dead end after another.
Retail pharmacy websites declared “appointments unavailable.” Slots at local medical centers kept disappearing before she could type in any information.
Then she received a private Facebook message from a stranger: Go to the Jewel-Osco website right now. Enter your ZIP code. It’s in Palatine.
She immediately followed the instructions and snagged one of the grocery store’s last few open spots that day. Her father, 80-year-old Duane Dow, got his first shot.
The tip came from the Facebook site Chicago Vaccine Hunters, a group of more than 10,000 members who collect and share information on where to get vaccinated in real time, as new locations and time slots emerge.
“I was stunned,” said Amber Dow, 44, of the West Lakeview neighborhood. “I was encouraged by the display of common humanity and compassion and desire to be of service, without any expectation of anything in return. It was just purely to give.”
With COVID-19 vaccine in short supply, more locals are turning to social media for help as they scour the internet for available immunizations.
Chicago officials point residents to website that allows users to find and book COVID-19 vaccination appointments
The city of Chicago is promoting a national website that will allow people to find and schedule COVID-19 vaccination appointments, officials announced.
The site, Zocdoc, is run by an outside provider and will allow users to find and book appointments from some local vaccination sites including city-run mass vaccination sites and those operated by AMITA Health, Erie Family Health, Innovative Express Care and Rush University Medical Center, city officials said.
The partnership comes at no cost to the city and also will allow people to sign up to be notified when new appointments are available, public health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady said in a news conference.
No, COVID-19 vaccines don’t contain Satan’s microchips (and other scary conspiracy theories aren’t true either)
There lies a challenge for public health officials trying to convince a wary portion of the public that the COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective. Phony assertions have circulated for months on social media, joining a current of anti-vaccine sentiment that has grown stronger over the last 20 years
A poll released last week showed that only 47% of Americans plan to get the vaccine. Those who didn’t want it mostly said they were concerned about side effects and the development and approval process, though the poll didn’t ask about many widely circulating myths.
Zizi Papacharissi, a communication and political science professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago, said social media has made it easy to amplify vaccine fabrications. Though companies like Facebook and YouTube have pledged to suppress such misinformation, she said that happens only after it has already spread.
“Any action they take is retroactive,” she said. ” … Putting something over it that says, ‘This is possibly misinformation,’ or taking the post down, it’s not really going to help. In fact, it might do the opposite. It might attract even more attention.”
As the rollout begins, here are common myths about COVID-19 vaccines and what experts have to say about them.
Do you have questions about the coronavirus vaccine? Send them to us and we’ll ask the experts.
The New York Times contributed.
![By ADRIANA GOMEZ LICON and DARLENE SUPERVILLE (Associated Press) WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday said the first rule to set minimum staffing levels at federally funded nursing homes and require that a certain portion of the taxpayer dollars they receive go toward wages for care workers is a long-overdue “milestone” that […]](https://www.chicagotribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Election_2024-Harris_89203.jpg?w=525 "By ADRIANA GOMEZ LICON and DARLENE SUPERVILLE (Associated Press) WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday said the first rule to set minimum staffing levels at federally funded nursing homes and require that a certain portion of the taxpayer dollars they receive go toward wages for care workers is a long-overdue “milestone” that […]")
