Kane County Health Dept. receiving more vaccines now after delays in recent weeks

The Kane County Health Department vaccinated more than 5,000 people on Thursday, marking the highest number of vaccinations administered in a single day in the county.

This comes after the health department began to receive more doses of the COVID-19 vaccine following a reduction in allotment after severe weather across the country led to shipping delays.

Uche Onwuta, director of health promotion at the Kane County Health Department, said she expects the number of doses to continue to increase next week. However, she warns that there still aren’t enough doses for everyone who wants one.

“We’re at the mercy of the state and federal governments, and the fact that there aren’t enough vaccines [for everyone] is a huge problem,” she said. “But we’re doing a lot better now compared to where we were a couple of weeks ago. Most pharmacies are providing vaccinations to the public. We typically vaccinate about 2,000 people a day, but [Thursday] we vaccinated 5,000 people in one day – which is the highest so far. We hope that things will continue to improve.”

Retail pharmacies and health providers are now providing vaccinations, and the health department continues to hold mass vaccination sites for eligible individuals. Onwuta said that those in Group 1b, which includes people over age 65 and people who work in essential industries like manufacturing, education, food service and agriculture, and adult day care can get a vaccine, in addition to any frontline health care worker who hasn’t yet received one.

“As soon as we receive enough doses, it will be easier for us to vaccinate more people,” she explained. “When this pandemic started, testing was the challenge. Now you can go to the Aurora test site [on Farnsworth Avenue] and there are no lines. We just have to give it more time, because eventually there will be enough to go around.”

According to the Illinois Department of Public Health, as of Friday, Kane County has administered a total of 83,954 doses, with 19,789 people, or 3.7%, of the county’s total population, fully vaccinated. The IDPH website shows that Kane County has a total vaccine inventory of 22,384 doses with 9,600 of the doses at the health department and the remaining 12,784 at community partner sites.

Onwuta encouraged those who want to get the vaccine to sign up to receive more information at the health department’s website, or visit the IDPH website for information on how to request an appointment from partnering pharmacies or other locations.

But just because you have received a vaccine, doesn’t mean you can let your guard down, Onwuta said.

She explained that it takes about two weeks after the second dose for the body to produce full immunity, so social distancing and mask wearing continue to be essential to limit the spread of the virus.

“It’s a new vaccine and we’re not exactly sure how long it takes to develop immunity after both shots, but the CDC says at least two weeks,” she said. “There is still a lot of research that needs to be done, but the vaccine will reduce the incidence of COVID. We’re confident with the research that shows [the vaccines] are 95% effective, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. But we still have to be cautious.”

The organizations listed below can help area seniors with technology issues. If you do not have access to a computer or do not have an email address, call:

● Seniors Services Associates: 630-897-4035 (Aurora), or 847-741-0404 (Elgin).

● AgeGuide Northeastern Illinois: 630-293-5990

● Association for Individual Development (AID): 630-966-9393

● Aurora Public Library District: 630-264-4117

● Aurora Township: 630-897-8777 Ext. 1178

● Batavia RSVP: 630-406-9993

● Family Focus: 331-256-5980

● Fox Valley Community Services: 815-786-9404

● Gail Borden Public Library District: 847-742-2411

● Hampshire Township: 847-683-9464

● Kane Senior Council: 630-338-0999

● Retina Health Institute - Dr Rashmi Kapur: 847-488-1030

● St. Charles Public Library: 630-584-0076

Two Rivers Head Start Agency: 630-264-1444

Geneva Public Library District: 630-232-0780