Illinois Increases Vaccine Access in Eight Rural Counties

CHICAGO - To further expand availability of the COVID-19 vaccine, Governor JB Pritzker announced today three additional counties will receive state support from the Rural Vaccination program and five new counties will receive Rapid Response vaccination teams to reverse COVID-19 trends.

"More than half of our state has already gotten lifesaving protection from COVID-19, and I'm proud to continue to expand vaccine access to reach those in rural communities in every corner of Illinois," said Governor JB Pritzker. "With additional supply and support directed to eight counties — some of which are seeing a concerning rise in cases and hospitalizations — it's my hope that we can give our residents the opportunity to protect themselves and help us all get back to the things we've missed during the pandemic."

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) announced this week that 50-percent of American adults 18 and older have received at least one dose of the coronavirus vaccine. Here in Illinois, 53-percent of adults 18 and older have received at least one dose of the vaccine.  

This week, the city of Chicago joined the rest of the state in expanding vaccine eligibility to individuals 16 and older, with the Pfizer vaccine only available for those 16 and 17 years of age. With this move, more than 10.2 million Illinois residents are eligible to receive this free vaccine at any of the more than 1,000 vaccination locations throughout the state. 

Rural Vaccination Program

Building on the successes of the last four weeks, the State of Illinois will send additional Moderna vaccine to Marion and provide ILNG support to Fayette and Jefferson counties, as part of the state's Rural Vaccination Program. 

The Marion County Health Department will host members of the Illinois National Guard to help augment vaccination efforts on April 24 and April 26, respectively. Meanwhile, the state of Illinois will send additional state resources to Jefferson & Marion Counties this week to increase vaccination capacity at the local level.

These clinics will allow the local health department to vaccinate an additional 600 residents in each county.

Rapid Response Program

To address early warning signs of COVID-19 resurgence, the State of Illinois is deploying rapid response vaccination teams to five counties in Region 1: Ogle, Boone, Carroll, Stephenson and Whiteside.

Once activated, the Rapid Response teams move into an assigned county supplied with additional vaccine, during these events Pfizer or Moderna will be utilized.  These teams move at the direction of the local health department to augment the local  vaccination strategy to quickly provide access to vaccine to residents in an area experiencing a rise in test positivity.

Since the vaccine was first made available in Illinois last December, the state has administered more than 8.2 million doses, with 26-percent of the population fully vaccinated.  Of that, the state has administered the more than 2.7 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine Illinois adults ages 65 and over.

These successes haven been made possible thanks to the tireless efforts of our local health departments and the continuous efforts of the Illinois National Guard.  To date, the Illinois National Guard has administered more than 1.2 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. 

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.