Illinois’ entry into the second phase of its COVID-19 vaccination plan means many more residents are eligible, but not everyone agrees the state is prioritizing the right groups as vaccine demand still outpaces supply.
In an image shared on Facebook and Twitter, the Illinois Republican Party said Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s “Hierarchy of Vaccine Priorities” puts prisoners, politicians, and college students into Phase 1B — the current vaccination phase — ahead of “individuals with high-risk health factors, and everyone else.”
Like other states, Illinois’ vaccination plan is modeled from federal guidelines, but states aren’t required to uniformly implement the non-binding guidance.
So we decided to take a look at the groups the state GOP claimed are now eligible in Illinois. State lawmakers and inmates are now eligible, but college students are not.
Prisoners and lawmakers can receive the vaccine
Along with people 65 years or older and frontline essential workers, inmates are part of Illinois’ second vaccination phase, which began Jan. 25.
Pritzker is no renegade on this.
The Federal Bureau of Prisons is providing vaccines to inmates, and at least 13 other states have included the group in their first two vaccination phases, according to a comparison of state prioritization plans from the Kaiser Family Foundation.
U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance says states may choose to vaccinate individuals living in congregate facilities — including prisons or jails — at the same time as frontline staff because of the increased risk of transmission in such close quarters.
Pritzker’s administration also added Illinois lawmakers to Phase 1B on Feb. 3 following requests from some members of the General Assembly. The requests came after several people tested positive for the coronavirus during the House’s lame-duck session at the Bank of Springfield Center in January. Both the state House and Senate canceled session days scheduled for February.
Illinois lawmakers gather on the floor of the Bank of Springfield Center for the lame-duck session of the Illinois House in January.
Justin L. Fowler/The State Journal-Register via AP file
State lawmakers in Colorado, Hawaii and Maryland are also being vaccinated in the second phase. Members of Congress have been receiving vaccines since the distribution began.
Still not eligible are individuals with high-risk health conditions from ages 16 to 64 who are not frontline essential workers. Pritzker recently announced the group will be added Feb. 25, which would make Illinois the 18th state to include them in their first two phases, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation comparison. Chicago and suburban Cook County, which receive doses separately from the federal government, have opted out of the expansion because of supply shortages.
CDC guidelines say people younger than 65 years with high-risk medical conditions do not need to be prioritized until the next phase of eligibility, Phase 1C. That means the state remains in line with federal guidance.
College students generally do not qualify
There is nothing in the Illinois vaccination plan allowing college students as a group to qualify.
A spokesperson for the Illinois Republican Party said its assertion that college students currently qualified for vaccinations was based on a WCIA-TV report in which a student is seen receiving the vaccine at the I Hotel Conference Center in Champaign.
Gov. J,B Pritzker, center, and Winnebago County Health Administer Sandra Martell, left, tour the vaccination center at Auburn High School in Rockford earlier this month.
Scott P. Yates/Rockford Register Star via AP file
The report also identifies her as a medical student, which according to the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District puts her squarely into another group that is eligible — healthcare workers.
Spokespeople for the Illinois Department of Public Health and the governor’s office confirmed college students who do not work in healthcare or another position covered in the current phases do not qualify.
Our ruling
The Illinois Republican Party says “Pritzker’s Hierarchy of Vaccine Priorities” puts prisoners, politicians and college students into Phase 1B, ahead of “individuals with high-risk health factors, and everyone else.”
It’s true inmates and state lawmakers currently qualify for vaccinations, and those under the age of 65 and others who are not frontline workers do not — including people with underlying health risks.
But it’s not true college students as a group are eligible. College students may only receive the vaccine right now if they meet other qualifying criteria.
The GOP’s post also ignores how the Pritzker administration’s prioritization plan for inmates and those with high-risk medical conditions is in line with federal guidance.
We rate it Half True.
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HALF TRUE – The statement is partially accurate but leaves out important details or takes things out of context.
Click here for more on the six PolitiFact ratings and how we select facts to check.
The Better Government Association runs PolitiFact Illinois, the local arm of the nationally renowned, Pulitzer Prize-winning fact-checking enterprise that rates the truthfulness of statements made by governmental leaders and politicians. BGA’s fact-checking service has teamed up weekly with the Sun-Times, in print and online. You can find all of the PolitiFact Illinois stories we’ve reported together here.
Sources
Facebook post, Illinois Republican Party, Feb. 5, 2021
Tweet, Illinois Republican Party, Feb. 5, 2021
Phase 1B, Illinois Department of Public Health
Press release, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Jan. 16, 2021
State COVID-19 Vaccine Priority Populations, Kaiser Family Foundation, Feb. 8, 2021
Consideration for phased implementation of COVID-19 vaccination, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, accessed Feb. 10, 2021
“‘Welcomed step’ or ‘ridiculous’? State lawmakers split on decision to move them up in COVID-19 vaccine line,” Chicago Sun-Times, Feb. 3, 2021
“Colorado state lawmakers, legislative journalists receive early access to COVID-19 vaccine,” Denver Post, Jan. 30, 2021
“State lawmakers, legislative staff get COVID-19 vaccine as essential workers,” Hawaii News Now, Jan. 28, 2021
“Maryland lawmakers offered access to coronavirus vaccine in Annapolis,” The Baltimore Sun, Jan. 29, 2021
“Members of Congress to get COVID-19 vaccine in first round, physician says,” Reuters, Dec. 17, 2020
“All with underlying conditions to be eligible for vaccine soon: ‘We need to waste no time in protecting them,’” Chicago Sun-Times, Feb. 11, 2021
The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices’ Updated Interim Recommendation, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dec. 22, 2020
COVID-19 vaccination planning guide, Illinois Department of Public Health, accessed Feb. 10, 2021
Email: Joe Hackler, Illinois Republican Party spokesperson, Feb. 8, 2021
“Pritzker: State legislators moved into Phase 1B of vaccination plan,” WCIA, Feb. 3, 2021
Email: Awais Vaid, deputy administrator and epidemiologist at the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District, Feb. 10, 2021
Emails: Melaney Arnold, spokesperson for the Illinois Department of Public Health, Feb. 9-10, 2021
Email: Jordan Abudayyeh, spokesperson for Gov. Pritzker, Feb. 9, 2021
