The McLean County Health Department (MCHD) said it plans to start scheduling appointments on Tuesday to give COVID vaccine booster shots.
Currently, only the Pfizer BioNTech booster vaccine is available. People who received the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are not eligible to receive the booster vaccine.
“The CDC recommends that booster doses match the original mRNA vaccines people received earlier this year,” MCHD public affairs coordinator Marianne Manko said in a news release.
The health department also will make the booster shots available for eligible populations at mass vaccination clinics at Grossinger Motors Arena in Bloomington from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. on Sept. 30 and Oct. 7.
The CDC said anyone 65 and older and people 50-64 with underlying medical conditions should get the additional dose six months after becoming fully vaccinated. People 18 and older also can get the booster if they have underlying medical conditions, or work in high-risk environments, such as teachers and grocery workers.
Appointments can be scheduled by calling the health department's COVID call center at (309) 888-5600.
New cases
McLean County announced 124 new coronavirus cases from the weekend and one additional death. It was man in his 60s. He was not associated with long-term care.
There have been 12 COVID-related deaths in McLean County in September and 257 since the start of the pandemic.
The number of McLean County residents who are hospitalized with COVID-19 dropped from 31 on Friday to 26, though there are still 30 COVID patients receiving care at Carle BroMenn Medical Center and OSF St. Joseph Medical Center.
The two hospitals report 96% of their hospital beds are full and 92% of intensive care beds are occupied.
Urbana-based Carle Health indicated 87% of its COVID-19 patients systemwide are not vaccinated, as well as 89% of its intensive care patients.
MCHD said 385 people are isolating at home, 175 people were released from quarantine over the weekend and 21,308 McLean County residents are considered recovered from COVID-19.
McLean County’s seven-day COVID testing positivity rate dropped to 2.5%, its lowest mark since July 20. The county’s cumulative positivity rate held at 4.5%, based on more than 490,200 tests conducted since March 20.
COVID vaccines
More than 185,600 COVID vaccines have been administered in McLean County, according to data from the Illinois Department of Public Health. The county’s rate of fully vaccinated rose to nearly 54%. The state vaccination rate increased to 55.1%.
