Attorney General Photo Op Highlights Patchwork of Rules for COVID-19
Attorney General Kwame Raoul received his first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine Friday in Chicago, but Raoul didn’t qualify under the city’s guidelines. He did qualify, though, under Advocate Health Care's distribution rules, highlighting the confusing patchwork of rules around the state.
When we posed the question on The Illinoize Facebook how people were faring finding COVID-19 vaccine appointments, there were many frustrated respondents.
“Terrible experience. Looked for 5 weeks and countless hours at all pharmacies and got nowhere. Called Loyola and got an appt right away! Pharmacies try hard, but they don’t have the knowledge to organize a mass vaccine.”
“Have tried 4 times on line to get a schedule and NO ONE has called back. I feel bad for others that can't get thru either. Both of us are over 65 with health concerns.”
Now that they opened a mass vaccination site, seems things are moving much better in Madison County. However, communications have been so terrible and we are leaving so many elderly behind with no backup to online booking.
Still trying, no openings at two locations, health department have to wait a week to try for openings later in month. I'm 65 and not stressing over it, but doesn't seem as easy as most have said it was.
The process is horrible! If it wasn't for my granddaughter, we would never have gotten an appt. Needs to be much simpler. Way too many steps!
When Attorney General Kwame Raoul used his vaccination Friday as a photo op to promote the inoculation for hesitant minority communities, it may have highlighted the patchwork of qualifications that have frustrated so many.
Raoul, who is 56, is a diabetic and cancer survivor, and qualifies for the state’s 1B plus category. The City of Chicago had opened to all residents of some Chicago ZIP codes, but not Raoul’s. The latest guidance from the city shows the city will jump from phase 1B to 1C on March 29 without a specific jump to Phase 1B plus.
But Raoul didn’t jump the line.
Advocate Health, the Chicago area hospital group that vaccinated Raoul, is injecting any adult over 55.
“The state of Illinois launched Phase 1B+ of its vaccine eligibility plan Feb. 25, which included the Attorney General as a cancer survivor, as well as having other comorbidities for which he receives treatment,” said Raoul’s spokesperson Annie Thompson. “Despite being eligible, and despite government leaders in Chicago being eligible for vaccination as early as January, Attorney General Raoul opted to wait until he had received eligibility notifications from two of his regular Chicago-based medical providers.”
Questions about Raoul’s vaccination highlight the frustrating patchwork of eligibility around the state.
While Chicago residents who don’t qualify for the United Center site fall under 1B for another week, the Cook County suburbs opened to 1B plus Monday. The rest of the state has been vaccinating people in the 1B plus category February 25.
Monday, Governor JB Pritzker opened vaccinations to higher education and government staff, and media. Next week, the state includes restaurant staff, construction trade workers, and religious leaders. The entire state will be eligible for the COVID-19 vaccination April 12.
“This all speaks to confusion and lack of planning,” said Sen. Chapin Rose (R-Mahomet). “This is planning that lands at Governor Pritzker’s doorstep. Whether the vaccine came in December or February, it was going to come. They should have been prepared for it.”
Pritzker admitted to confusion about eligibility Friday, but claimed opening the vaccine to more people will make the process easier.
“There are people who are at the edges of qualifying for one of those phases that are especially frustrated,” he said at a news conference. “That’s one of the reasons that I’m really glad we can move away from this idea of taking sections of the population, because I think there’s some confusion out there. So, I want people not to be confused. I think because the supplies are ramping up at a good clip, we believe we can take away that confusion and allow people to get an appointment relatively fast after we start [opening to everyone] April 12.”
Rose criticized Pritzker for taking three months to open a toll-free number for seniors to access vaccine information.
A health care source told The Illinoize establishing the call center has been a “logistical nightmare.” We’re told most providers have already set up call-in numbers.
Friday, IDPH Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said the system was available for people who have access to online services, but need help navigating them. She said agents will be able to make appointments on behalf of individuals without access to the internet.