The following was published as part of an editorial blog authored by Lindsay Romano within The Refresh with NowDecatur.com. The Refresh is a daily email M-F at 8 am and a Saturday edition at 9 am. If you would like to receive The Refresh, click HERE.
January 29, 2021 – I want to help to explain the local process of COVID vaccine distribution. The only thing I ask is that you, dear reader, use these facts to help spread the information and educate others (on Facebook, in person, etc).
First, have patience. Our healthcare system has never done this before. And this is THE largest public health undertaking in our lifetime. Soak that in for a second. No one loves the process and we all wish it could move faster. But we are at the mercy of vaccine production. And our local healthcare system is doing everything it can to distribute the available vaccines in a fair and equitable fashion under mandates and guidelines determined by the CDC.
Here is an FAQ:
Who can get the vaccine right now? – Currently, in the state of IL, only 1a and 1b category residents are eligible to receive the vaccine. This is not because you aren’t important if you don’t fall into these categories. It’s because reaching these populations first can help stem the spread of the virus and protect people on the front lines. And this is a HUGE group that encompasses 3.9 MILLION people in Illinois. So it will take some time.
My Mom is in a nursing home. Why isn’t the Health Department or Crossing Healthcare taking care of those people first? – The State of Illinois has contracted with CVS and Walgreens to vaccinate our population in long-term care facilities. Granted, this process is not moving nearly fast enough with a recent study finding only a fourth of that allocation being administered. But, that is a completely separate allocation that the vaccines being distributed through our local healthcare providers.
Why are prisoners getting the vaccine before me?! – Here is something to consider. If even a small percentage of the population of the Macon County Jail became infected and needed hospitalization, it would completely overwhelm our local hospitals. So it only makes sense to vaccinate populations that live in congregant settings.
I am eligible to receive a vaccine, but appointments are already full every time I try to get one! – Yes. This is frustrating. But again, this will take some time and our healthcare system is doing everything it can to get you vaccinated. I am going to break this down by the two programs that are currently administering vaccines to the eligible public:
- The Macon County Health Department – When they receive an allocation, they are mandated to distribute that allocation within a certain time period. That doesn’t give them a lot of time to get the word out. The Health Department has taken the approach of varying how the public can get a vaccine; either by phone appointment, online appointment, or first come first serve drive-through. They feel this is an equitable approach that gives access to all areas of the population. To stay up to date with the latest availability, we recommend following The Macon County Health Department Facebook Page. They often publicize vaccine availability there before they utilize local media.
- Crossing Healthcare and DMH – Crossing and DMH recently announced a partnership where they are combining their allocations to vaccinate the eligible public. They hope that this process will allow them to vaccinate up to 1000 people a week. But again, that is contingent on the number of vaccines they receive each week. Crossing and DMH set up an online appointment system for this program. When it was first announced, the available slots were filled within 25 minutes. BUT this has caused some confusion. Here are some additional facts to know:
- Crossing and DMH expect to be doing this process over the entire year. So be patient again.
- The online appointment system will currently show that no appointments are available through the end of February. BUT, that is just because they had to build the calendar. That does NOT mean you won’t be able to get an appointment before then. They will not make appointments available until they know what their next allocation will be. As they receive vaccines, they will make appointments available. This will likely be on a week by week basis for awhile.
- Crossing advises the public to check back OFTEN, especially on Thursdays and Fridays when they are advised on what their next allocation will be. In addition, their team is constantly cleaning the system of people who accidentally booked more than one appointment, were not in the 1a or 1b eligible category, or managed to receive a vaccine elsewhere. Because of that, additional appointments may open on the fly…so check back OFTEN!
Bottom line…Don’t let perfect be the enemy of good. Have some grace and some patience and we will all get through this.
-Lindsay
