Mass Vaccination Site to Open in Cook County.

To further expand the availability of the COVID-19 vaccine, Governor JB Pritzker today announced an additional state mass vaccination site in Cook County and that will open to all eligible Illinois residents on Thursday, April 15. As of April 12, all Illinois residents age 16 and older are eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine with nearly 19,000 residents receiving vaccinations at state mass vaccination sites in the first 24 hours of universal vaccine eligibility. With the state’s seven-day test positivity rate and hospitalizations on the rise, local and state health officials are urging Illinois residents to seek out a vaccination location near them in order to protect themselves and their families from COVID-19.

“I’m proud to deploy Illinois National Guard teams and additional state resources to Cook County to ensure residents can receive their vaccines as efficiently and equitably as possible,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “The brave men and women of the Guard have already administered over one million vaccine doses to Illinoisans across the state, and as the federal government prepares to increase Illinois’ deliveries to over 100,000 a day in the coming weeks, IDPH and our 97 local health departments are prepared to meet the moment. In the meantime, I encourage all Illinoisans to wear their masks and stay vigilant as we power through to the other side of the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Opening on April 15, the former Target location in Matteson is the 12th mass vaccination site located in Cook and the collar counties and is the state’s 21st mass vaccination site open to all eligible Illinois residents. The new site will provide Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. The State of Illinois is committed to improving healthcare access and equity in underserved communities that have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic.

“In March, we saw COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations increase at an alarming rate,” said Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle. “There is no doubt that we need to continue to vaccinate as many people as our vaccine supply will allow. I encourage all those who are able to get vaccinated to do so to get us on the other side of this pandemic, allowing us to return to normalcy.”

“I am very excited to have this mass vaccination site in the Village of Matteson,” said State Rep. Debbie Meyers-Martin (D-Matteson). “It is important for our community to have this resource to fight COVID-19.”

Since the vaccine was first made available in Illinois last December, the state has administered nearly 7.5 million doses, with 30% of the population fully vaccinated. Furthermore, 76% of individuals age 65 and over have received at least their first dose of the vaccine.

These successes have been made possible thanks to the tireless efforts of our local health departments and the continuous efforts of the Illinois National Guard.  To date, there are nearly 1,500 troops assigned to COVID-19 operations in 43 different locations throughout the state.

In addition to the state-supported mass vaccination sites, the men and women of the Illinois National Guard are running additional vaccination missions across the state, furthering the state’s ability to assist specific regions and populations, with more assignments in the coming weeks:

1. Equity-focused mobile vaccination teams are partnering with local health departments to reach underserved communities in Cook, Lake, DeKalb, McHenry, St. Clair, Jackson, Sangamon, Madison, Winnebago, Rock Island, McLean, Grundy, Vermilion, and the Southern Seven Health Department Counties.

2. Illinois National Guard troops are working directly with local health departments to improve local vaccination rates and meet the public demand for safe and effective vaccines in DeKalb, Lake, McHenry, McLean, Rock Island, and Vermilion.

How to Make an Appointment

Information regarding vaccination locations as well as details on how to book an appointment to receive the vaccine can be found at the state’s COVID website, coronavirus.illinois.gov. Residents who don’t have access to or need assistance navigating online services can call the toll-free IDPH hotline at 833-621-1284 to book an appointment. The hotline is open 7 days a week from 6am to midnight with agents available in English and Spanish.

The state-supported vaccination sites listed below are open to all eligible Illinois residents, regardless of where they live, unless otherwise noted. All state-supported vaccination sites require appointments. Residents must meet the state’s current eligibility requirements to book an appointment.  As a reminder, currently only the Pfizer vaccine has been approved for those ages 16 and 17.

About Post Author

Site Editor

See author's posts