State and county officials held a news conference Monday to announce the launch of Phase 1B of coronavirus vaccinations and the opening of a vaccination site at the Tinley Park Convention Center.
State and county officials held a news conference Monday to announce the launch of Phase 1B of coronavirus vaccinations and the opening of a vaccination site at the Tinley Park Convention Center.
The site opened to the public on Tuesday for appointment-only vaccinations. It is one of more than two dozen sites being set up and operated by the Illinois National Guard.
The Tinley Park site has a current capacity of 9,000 vaccinations per week, according to Gov. J.B. Pritzker, and it can expand eventually to 18,000 per week when the supply of vaccine doses increases.
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle lauded the creation of the large-scale vaccination site.
“Today that sliver of light at the end of the tunnel is just a bit brighter,” she said.
The requirement to make appointments is intended to prevent long lines of people waiting for vaccines and the frustration they experience if the site is unable to provide them with shots, as has happened in some other locations in the country, Pritzker said.
Israel Rocha, CEO for Cook County Health, noted that Cook County residents should visit the county’s vaccine portal not only for information but to register for an appointment.
During the registration process residents will be advised whether they qualify to receive a vaccine under the current phase of the program, and if so, will allow them to register for an appointment.
Those who don’t yet qualify for an appointment can still sign up to receive updates on the program.
“The website will only reflect appointments in which a vaccine is guaranteed,” Rocha said, noting that in some other places, appointments were made and then canceled when not enough doses were available. “We’re trying to avoid that.”
He said the county’s goal is to get everyone vaccinated as quickly and equitably as possible.
The state vaccine locator shows 14 sites within 10 miles of Homewood and 15 sites within 10 miles of Flossmoor. Most are Walgreens or Jewel-Osco pharmacies. The closest are the Walgreens at 18301 Pulaski Ave. in Hazel Crest and the Walgreens at 3200 Vollmer Road in Olympia Fields.
In addition to the Tinley Park Convention Center, there are also four sites managed by the Cook County Department of Public Health in the area, one at Cottage Health Center in Ford Heights, the CCDPH office in Oak Forest and the Robbins Health Center in Robbins.
As of Wednesday, 4.6% of residents in CCDPH’s jurisdiction had received at least one dose of the vaccine, and 1.2% had completed the vaccine series.
The administration of vaccines has not been geographically even, though. According to the CCDPH website, 5.3% of residents in the North region have received at least one dose. In the South region, 3.2% of residents have gotten one dose.
County Commissioner Donna Miller, who represents the 6th District, including Homewood, noted that the South Suburbs have been hit hard by the virus.
“We know African American and Hispanic communities have bene hit hardest,” she said. We have had the vast majority of deaths in Black and brown communities. We need to get past the vaccine hesitancy that people experience.”