DuPage County COVID-19 vaccination clinic to open at fairgrounds in Wheaton

WHEATON, Ill. (WLS) -- Despite frustration over vaccine supply not meeting demand, the DuPage County community vaccination clinic opens at the DuPage County Fairgrounds in Wheaton Wednesday.

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"Our own supply week to week is far too little and inconsistent. We cannot adequately serve our partners and they cannot have appointments for the public if we don't know week to week how much vaccine we will receive," DuPage County Chairman Dan Cronin said.

Once a drive-thru COVID-19 testing site, the health department will relocate its vaccination clinic to the fairgrounds, joining a growing list of more than 80 vaccination locations around the county. It is expected nearly 1,000 people a day can be immunized.

"The community vaccination program developed is both flexible and scalable based on vaccine supply using a decentralized vaccination model," said Sam Tornatore, president of the DuPage County Health Department.

DuPage County leads the collar counties in vaccinations with over 100,000 doses administered to residents. Executive director Karen Ayala is urging seniors and front-line essential workers to register on their website and several other avenues.The county estimates it will take about three months to vaccinate the 268,000 people within Phase 1B.

West suburban resident Janice Guider hopes she and others like her will be able to finally get the shot. In an eligible age group and registered to be immunized, the chairwoman of the DuPage County NAACP's health committee remains concerned that minorities, the elderly and other vulnerable groups more adversely affected by COVID-19 still aren't getting vaccinated.

"Black people, Latinx people, elderly people are often not able to get it and they are frustrated with the process," Guider said.

Those who want to register for the vaccine in DuPage County can visit www.dupagehealth.org/covid19vaccine and those without internet or need support can call the health department at (630) 682-7400