Why is Illinois so bad at distributing vaccines?

Thank you to the rundown at WBEZ for this therundown@wbez.org | @whuntah

1. Why is Illinois so bad at distributing vaccines?

The state has fallen behind almost every state and U.S. territory when it comes to handing out vaccines, according to breakdowns of federal data from The New York Times and The Washington Post.

According to both newspapers, only 6.6% of Illinois’ population has gotten the first vaccine dose, just a few percentage points higher than Alabama, Kansas, Iowa and Idaho. Leading the pack are American Samoa (19.6%), Palau (17.4%) and Alaska (13.3%), the Times reports.

Looking at the broader picture, it will take the U.S. until Sept. 11 to partially vaccinate 70% of the nation’s population if things don’t change, according to The New York Times. Some health experts believe the country needs to hit 70% in order to reach herd immunity. [NYT]

According to the Post, Illinois has received nearly 1.5 million first doses, enough to vaccine 11.7% of the population. [WaPo]

As the Chicago Tribune reports, local health care providers are “performing a complicated, logistical dance” as they prepare to offer first doses of the vaccine to more people while also keeping track of who is up for a second dose. [Chicago Tribune]

Meanwhile, Gov. JB Pritzker today announced a plan aimed at speeding up vaccinations for front line workers and people 65 years old and over. Pritzker says he will divert 97,000 unused doses away from a federal partnership with Walgreens and CVS, which he has criticized for moving too slowly. [Chicago Tribune]

The race to distribute vaccines has taken on even more urgency in recent weeks as scientists rush to understand the potential dangers posed by new virus variants. [Washington Post]