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Pritzker: More than 100,000 health care workers have gotten vaccine so far

Illinois has given a COVID-19 vaccine to 100,991 health care workers so far, Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Wednesday, as the state prepares for a second inoculation rollout in nursing homes next week.

The tally of doses is more than any other state's, Pritzker said, ticking off more populous states like California.

"The vaccine team in Illinois sprinted past them all," he said.

New cases of COVID-19 totaled 6,762 Wednesday with 135 additional deaths from the respiratory disease, the Illinois Department of Public Health reported.

This week 174,600 doses of Moderna Inc.'s recently approved vaccine "will arrive directly to (hospitals) and local health departments across the state," Pritkzer said, with Chicago receiving a separate allotment of 48,000.

And 76,050 Pfizer vaccines are shipping this week, too, with 15,600 reserved for health care workers in Chicago and 23,400 for the rest of the state.

An additional 37,050 will be set aside for residents and staffs at nursing homes with shots expected to start Monday.

The Moderna vaccine doesn't require ultra cold storage as Pfizer Inc.'s version does, which was first deployed Dec. 15 in Illinois, and that will assist CVS and Walgreens pharmacies as they start inoculating seniors at long-term care facilities Monday.

"We're really excited to be a part of this and help bring the pandemic to an end," said pharmacist Purvish Patel, CVS Health regional director.

CVS pharmacists, pharmacy interns and pharmacy technicians will be administering shots at nearly 900 nursing homes across Illinois, reaching about 150,000 patients.

The company is already inoculating long-term care residents in other U.S. states and have received a positive response, said Patel, noting recent stops included veterans' homes.

"They were super excited to have us there and provide the first dose," Patel said, noting both vaccines require two doses weeks apart.

CVS is taking advantage of its network of stores to store vaccines, which are then taken by teams to nearby long-term care locations.

The number of patients in Illinois hospitals with COVID-19 came to 4,593 as of Tuesday night, compared to the seven-day average of 4,583. Hospitalizations dipped to 4,389 Sunday, the lowest tally since Nov. 7, and they've crept up since.

That's one reason Pritzker said he won't ease restrictions in health regions despite the fact some like Will and Kankakee counties (Region 7) meet IDPH standards for hospital bed availability and positivity rates.

Heading into Christmas and New Year's celebrations, "my concern is we're going to see some uptick in hospitalizations as well as cases," the governor said.

The positivity rate for COVID-19 cases is 7.5% based on a seven-day average.

Total cases since the pandemic began came to 918,070 and 15.547 Illinoisans have died of the virus.

Labs processed 82,328 tests in the last 24 hours.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker gives a vaccine update during a news conference on Wednesday. Courtesy of state of Illinois
Jazmine Scott, a registered nurse, administers the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine to Dan Nash, a veteran and patient at Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center on Wednesday. Courtesy of U.S. Navy/Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Apprentice Caylen J. McCutcheon
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