Will County Health Department looks to wind down mass vaccination sites

Over the next several weeks, the Will County Health Department will be winding down its operations at multiple COVID-19 vaccination sites as it shifts its efforts to pop-up clinics around the county.

Workers at mass vaccination sites at the health department’s Joliet facility, at the old Toys ‘R’ Us store near the Louis Joliet Mall, in Wilmington and in Monee have administered thousands of shots to residents. Just under 40% of Will County’s total population of over 690,000 residents are fully vaccinated, according to the latest Illinois Department of Public Health Data.

“There’s a lot of work to be done,” said Steve Brandy, a Will County Health Department spokesman.

County health officials have said the department aims to take its clinics on the road to community events, especially as restrictions related to the pandemic are lifted because of declining COVID-19 transmission and hospitalizations. The health department and other providers have planned clinics at at least nine schools throughout the county.

As of Friday, the state was two weeks away from a full reopening.

Still, residents who have yet to get their shot will still have opportunities to get vaccinated at the county’s mass vaccination sites.

The clinic at the old Toys ‘R’ Us in Joliet will close on July 31. Until then, the clinic there operates from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays and on Sundays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The Wilmington clinic will offer first shots on June 9 and June 23. Those who receive their first shots on those dates will be able to get their second shot three weeks later.

The Monee clinic will be offering first shots on June 10 and June 24.

Community transmission of the novel coronavirus has remained stable over the past several weeks, according to the IDPH. As of Tuesday, the county’s rolling average COVID-19 test positivity rate stood at 3%.

Hospitals in the South Suburban Region, which includes Will and Kankakee counties, have reported about 75 COVID-19 patients as of Thursday. That total is down from two weeks ago when about 90 COVID-19 patients were hospitalized.

For more information, including where to find the nearest COVID-19 vaccination clinic, visit willcountyhealth.org.