Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Thursday is expected to widely expand eligibility for the coronavirus vaccine starting April 12 to all Illinois residents 16 and older except those in Chicago, sources told the Tribune.
It’s part of a revised reopening plan that also includes slightly increased capacity limits for retail stores, theaters and outdoor venues, among other changes, sources said.
Chicago gets its own pool of vaccine directly from the federal government and sets its own rules. And on Wednesday, Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Wednesday announced Chicago would advance to phase 1c on March 29, making eligible city residents who have medical conditions or are essential workers but haven’t yet qualified for the coronavirus vaccine.
Here’s what’s happening Wednesday with COVID-19 in the Chicago area and Illinois:
9:10 p.m.: Pritzker expected to expand COVID-19 vaccine eligibility starting April 12
Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Thursday is expected to widely expand eligibility for the coronavirus vaccine starting April 12 to all Illinois residents 16 and older except those in Chicago, sources told the Tribune.
It’s part of a revised reopening plan that also includes slightly increased capacity limits for retail stores, theaters and outdoor venues, among other changes, sources said.
The governor’s vaccine move comes just days after Democratic President Joe Biden called on governors across the country to open eligibility to all adults by May 1. Pritzker last week expressed confidence in the state’s ability to meet Biden’s deadline.
“I am confident that not just by May 1 but maybe even a little bit earlier we could open up to everyone in the state, everyone that’s eligible,” the governor said Friday.
Though Illinois expanded vaccine eligibility to people under 65 with certain health conditions Feb. 25, most Chicago-area health departments and hospitals are not yet vaccinating people in that group, saying they’re still focusing on seniors and essential workers because of limited vaccine supply.
Illinois residents under 65 with health conditions have been left to hunt for shots mostly at retail pharmacies, including Walgreens, which has more than 500 stores offering vaccines in the state. Walgreens follows federal, state and local eligibility guidelines when giving vaccines, said Kris Lathan, a Walgreens spokeswoman, in an email.
Chicago gets its own pool of vaccine directly from the federal government and sets its own rules. And on Wednesday, Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Wednesday announced Chicago would advance to phase 1c on March 29, making eligible city residents who have medical conditions or are essential workers but haven’t yet qualified for the coronavirus vaccine.
5:35 p.m. (update): CPS sets goal of first vaccines for all employees by April to help ‘get us back to normal’
All Chicago Public Schools employees and vendors are now eligible to get COVID-19 vaccines at sites run by the district, it announced Wednesday, the one-year anniversary of statewide school closures.
CPS CEO Janice Jackson said the goal is to have all staff members receive a vaccination by the end of March. The district hopes to bring high school students back to classrooms next month — announcing on Tuesday a “target” return date of April 19 — and is bargaining with the Chicago Teachers Union over an agreement to do so. CPS has not yet provided in-person attendance data for elementary students, who returned in three waves culminating March 8. During a news conference Wednesday, Jackson said she was not aware the data had not been released.
“This is a solemn anniversary for Chicago Public Schools,” Jackson said at Roosevelt High School in Albany Park, one of the district’s vaccination sites. ” … I want to focus on the work going forward, the work that’s going to get us back to normal, and more importantly the work that’s focused on recovery for Chicago Public Schools. The COVID-19 vaccine is a huge tool in our toolkit in order to return to normalcy.”
With more than 52,000 employees and vendors and no central tracking method, it’s unclear how many still need their first doses. CPS only has access to data from its own sites, where 5,100 first doses had been given as of Monday, though the Chicago Board of Education last month approved a measure that requires employees to tell the district whether they’ve been vaccinated.
4:20 p.m.: Chicago Walgreens stores aren’t consistently giving COVID-19 vaccines to people with health conditions. Why?
Andrea Helms felt lucky to snag a COVID-19 vaccination appointment at a Walgreens store in Lakeview earlier this month — until it was time to get her shot.
She arrived at the store on time, filled out a form, and was taken to a room to receive her inoculation. The woman who was to give her the shot then took another look at her paperwork.
“She said: ‘I’m sorry, but I can’t give you the shot today. We’re only doing health care workers and over 65,’” recalled Helms, who had indicated she had a qualifying health condition when making her appointment online. Helms was caught off guard. She left the store, unvaccinated.
“It’s such a roller coaster,” said Helms, 47, of Uptown. “Everyone is struggling in some way. It’s an added stress.”
In recent weeks, a number of people with health conditions who now qualify for vaccinations under state guidelines say they’ve been turned away from some Chicago Walgreens stores despite the fact that many other Walgreens stores in the city and suburbs are vaccinating that group. The inconsistency at Walgreens, which has the largest vaccination program of any pharmacy in the state, has created yet another layer of confusion and anxiety for a group that’s already having trouble finding vaccines.
4:15 p.m.: IRS will delay tax filing due date until May 17
The Internal Revenue Service is delaying the traditional tax filing deadline from April 15 until May 17, according to the House Ways and Means Committee.
The IRS and Treasury Department didn’t immediately comment Wednesday or provide further details. But the committee confirmed and applauded the move, which provides added time for both taxpayers and the IRS alike given the pressure from the pandemic.
1:41 p.m.: Pritzker says health and economy to be considered in incremental reopening plan
Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Wednesday he’s working with business interests and health professionals in developing an incremental reopening plan for Illinois that is expected to be released later this week.
“We’re working with industry leaders, (and) we’re working with our doctors at (the Illinois Department of Public Health) as well as other experts in the state to make sure that the phased reopening is not only healthy for everybody but also good for the economy as we move it forward,” Pritzker said outside Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital in downstate Lincoln.
At a stop later in Decatur, Pritzker said the new reopening plan would balance economic interests with the need to stay ahead of new variants of the virus that spread more quickly than the strains that drove the spring and fall surges.
He said the state would have little time to react to an increase in the variants.
“Having said that,” he added, “let me be clear to everybody: I’m more optimistic today than I have ever been throughout this pandemic about where we are going and getting to the end of the pandemic.”
1:40 p.m.: Chicago to begin vaccinating those with health conditions and remaining essential workers on March 29, Lightfoot says
The city of Chicago will greatly expand the number of people eligible for vaccination shots later this month, Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced on Wednesday.
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.
The eligibility for those with health conditions applies to Chicagoans 16 and older and will follow the Illinois Department of Health’s guidelines that include cancer, lung disease, heart conditions and other ailments that put individuals at greater risk of serious illness or death from COVID-19. Unlike the rest of the state, however, Chicago will not include smokers in that category. Essential jobs will be defined as industries such as restaurants, construction, finance, media and other categories.
12:11 p.m.: 1,655 new confirmed and probable COVID-19 cases and 17 additional deaths reported
Illinois health officials on Wednesday announced 1,655 new confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 and 17 additional fatalities, bringing the total number of known infections in Illinois to 1,210,113 and the statewide death toll to 20,955 since the start of the pandemic.
Officials also reported 77,798 new tests in the last 24 hours. The statewide positivity rate for cases is 2.2%.
The 7-day daily average of administered vaccine doses is 102,223, with 102,390 doses given on Tuesday. Officials also say a total of 4,283,487 vaccines have now been administered.
11:49 a.m.: National Guard’s mass COVID-19 vaccination center in Batavia to open to all eligible Illinois residents
The mass vaccination site in Batavia is opening Friday for all Illinois residents who meet the COVID-19 eligibility guidelines, Kane County Chairman Corinne Pierog said.
That’s much earlier than the anticipated April opening, and there are discussions underway with the National Guard about establishing sites in Carpentersville and Elgin, Pierog said.
The three sites would provide central locations for the county’s more than 546,000 residents to be vaccinated, she said.
Illinois residents can sign up for the Batavia vaccination center beginning Thursday online or by phone, Pierog said Tuesday at a Carpentersville Village Board meeting. The center, located at 501 N. Randall Road in former Sam’s Club store, will be open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. six days a week.
11:19 a.m.: CPS aims to get first shots to all employees by April 1
All Chicago Public Schools employees and vendors are now eligible to get COVID-19 vaccines at sites run by the district, it announced Wednesday, the one-year anniversary of statewide school closures.
CPS CEO Janice Jackson said Wednesday the goal is to have all staff members to receive a vaccination by the end of March.
With more than 52,000 people in that category and no central tracking method, it’s unclear how many still need their first doses. CPS only has access to data from its own sites, where 5,100 first doses had been given as of Monday, though the Chicago Board of Education last month approved a measure that requires employees to tell the district whether they’ve been vaccinated.
But not all are complying with a survey asking to self-report their vaccine status.
10:28 a.m.: 361 Chicago businesses that closed during the pandemic: Explore our list
Nearly a year since the COVID-19 pandemic forced businesses from bars and restaurants to boutiques and hair salons to lock their doors, Chicago’s business community is still reeling.
Businesses have faced an evolving patchwork of restrictions since Gov. J.B. Pritzker issued a statewide stay-at-home order that took effect March 21.
But small steps toward normalcy come too late for many businesses. The Tribune has identified more than 350 storefronts that have closed in the last year, no doubt a fraction of the total.
10:06 a.m.: 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 incoming 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 clothing and testing.
6:44 a.m. Chicago health officials to announce next steps, phases in COVID-19 vaccine distribution
Chicago health officials were set Wednesday to announce the “planned next steps and phases” of vaccine distribution in the city.
City Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady and Dr. Geraldine Luna, the Health Department’s medical director, were scheduled to hold a news conference at City Hall to announce details of the city’s efforts going forward.
The city entered what it’s calling Phase 1B for frontline essential workers, people in group residential settings and those older than 65 in January, and had estimated that other essential workers and Chicago residents with health conditions that make them vulnerable to COVID-19 would begin to get vaccines March 29.
6 a.m.: Illinois universities aim to reopen completely this fall. Is that a post-pandemic pipe dream or a realistic goal?
Colleges and universities across the state are betting on a more complete return to in-person learning this fall, but it’s not clear if those plans will come to fruition at this stage of the pandemic.
The University of Illinois System — with campuses in Urbana-Champaign, Chicago and Springfield — announced Tuesday that it anticipates the majority of classes and labs to be held face to face next school year.
Noting exceptions for larger lecture-based courses, which will continue to be offered online, system President Tim Killeen pointed to increased COVID-19 testing and rising vaccine supply as key factors that support the decision.
Though schools are eager to share their plans, especially as the admissions deadline looms for prospective students, many variables could throw expectations into flux.
It’s still not known when all college students and faculty will receive the vaccine, though President Joe Biden has pledged that every resident will be eligible by May 1. And other critical questions, such as whether new coronavirus strains will derail progress and what state health officials will allow, could also complicate projections.
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