- Credibility:
CHICAGO — Illinois is expanding vaccine eligibility to more essential workers, including restaurant and construction workers.
The changes will allow more workers to get vaccinated before Illinois begins opening appointments to all people 16 and older April 12. The eligibility changes don’t apply to Chicago, which has its own vaccination plan and gets a separate allocation of doses from the federal government.
The essential workers will be added to Illinois’ eligibility list in two phases.
Here’s who will be eligible starting Monday:
- Higher education staff
- Government workers
- Media
Here’s who will be eligible starting March 29:
- Food and beverage workers
- Construction trade workers
- Religious leaders
Eligibility will be expanded to all Illinoisans 16 and older April 12, Gov. JB Pritzker announced Thursday.
Chicago’s vaccination campaign is still focused on frontline workers and people 65 and older. It is expected to move into Phase 1C on March 29, at which point essential workers — including restaurant workers — will be able to start getting shots in the city.
Children are not expected to be eligible for vaccinations until the summer or fall, as trials to test their safety and efficacy on children are in progress.
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