CHICAGO (WAND) - The Chicago Bulls' arena will host COVID-19 vaccination appointments in the coming weeks.
Starting at 8:30 a.m. Thursday, older adults in Illinois can schedule their first appointment at the United Center vaccination site. A limited number of vaccines will start to be administered on March 9 and will be followed by a full opening on March 10.
After the exclusive appointment period for older adults ends, all Illinoisans who are eligible under Phase 1B+ of the Illinois vaccination plan will be able to start scheduling appointments at 4 p.m. on Sunday, March 7.
Officials said the United Center site will be able to administer 6,000 vaccine doses each days. All doses are provided directly by the federal government and are not taken from state or city allotments.
Over 100,000 appointments will be available in the next three days when registration begins. Vaccines are offered free of charge and do not require insurance. Insurance will not be requested at the federal community vaccination center. Immigration status documentation is also not required.
A press release listed the following two options for Illinoisans making appointments:
- To register online, visit Zocdoc.com/vaccine. The web site is projected to handle much higher volume of appointment requests. Zocdoc will show real-time appointment availability and eligible residents will then be able to select a date/time and book an appointment online. Date of birth will be required when booking an appointment to confirm vaccine eligibility.
- To register by phone, call (312) 746-4835. To help bridge the digital divide, a multi-lingual call center will be available to help seniors make an appointment. This call center will be available from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. Given the anticipated high demand for appointments, residents who can use the web site should book their appointments online. While the call center has 200 staffers, those who need to use the call center will very likely experience lengthy wait times.
The site operates each day for eight weeks in the federal government's vaccination pilot program. The facility will be managed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) with support from the Department of Defense, State of Illinois, Cook County and the City of Chicago.
“From the beginning, we have prioritized ensuring our seniors and vulnerable populations can receive the COVID-19 vaccine as quickly and equitably as possible, and I’m thrilled the United Center vaccine site will help deliver on those core goals,” said Gov. JB Pritzker. “This site adds 6,000 doses per day to our growing statewide capacity and joins 15 state-supported mass vaccine sites now operating across Illinois. I’m grateful to our federal, county and city partners for their leadership and encourage our seniors and all eligible Illinoisans who have not yet been vaccinated to utilize this new site.”
“Vaccinating our seniors as fast as possible is core to our ability to rise above this pandemic as a city and as a state,” said Chicago Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot. “This new United Center site will significantly increase our capacity to vaccinate vulnerable Illinoisans and further ensure equitable access to the vaccine. I want to thank our partners at the state, county and federal level for making this announcement possible and I look forward to working closely with them as we continue to do everything possible to save our seniors.”
Chicago is partnering with Uber to give residence transportation assistance to and from vaccination appointments. Uber is providing 20,000 $40 ride credits for eligible residents.
After a Chicago resident sets up their appointment on Zocdoc, they will be asked in a confirmation email if they need transportation. Those who do will get ride credits from Uber that will only work for rides to and from the United Center.
