Joliet Senior Citizens Get Moderna Vaccines This Week?

JOLIET, IL — The Joliet Fire Department is far ahead of its goal of administering the Moderna coronavirus vaccine to Joliet area school teachers. At the current pace, Deputy Fire Chief Jeff Carey expects to start vaccinating Joliet's senior citizens as early as Thursday.

Joliet Patch interviewed Carey at the Joliet West High School field house on Monday. This marks his fire department's second full week of providing Joliet area teachers and staff with the coronavirus vaccine. A total of 500 vaccinations were planned Monday.

"We've wanted to get to that 65 and older group," Carey told Patch. "We're thinking we'll start Thursday. Originally, we did not think we could do that until next Thursday (February 19th) so we'll be about a week early."

Carey said that senior citizens must go to the Will County Health Department website to register for the vaccination.

More details about the start of the senior citizen vaccinations will be announced later this week, Carey said.

On Tuesday, another 500 Joliet teachers and staff will be vaccinated. On Wednesday, a whopping 1,300 vaccinations are planned for the staff at Plainfield school district 202, Carey said.

Starting Thursday, the plan is to administer 900 to 1,000 Moderna vaccinations to local senior citizens and keep doing that for the next several weeks, Carey said.

The Joliet Fire Department has taken over the Joliet West High School field house as its headquarters for the local vaccinations. An emergency room doctor at AMITA Health Saint Joseph Medical Center is also on hand to distribute supplies of the vaccinations.

Many of Monday's teachers receiving the Moderna vaccinations were employed with Joliet Public School District 86.

"We get a morning rush, then it's a slow trickle all day," Carey said. "It's teachers, cops and firemen still coming."

Carey praised the Will County Health Department for obtaining several thousand doses of the Moderna vaccine.

"The county has been able to give us much as we want," Carey said.

About 16 off-duty Joliet firefighter/paramedics per day are staffing the volunteer station to administer the vaccinations.

Joliet City Councilwoman Jan Quillman, a retired registered nurse, has volunteered everyday since the vaccinations began last week, Carey said.

Once the Joliet senior citizens start showing up, Carey said he hopes to administer 1,000 vaccinations per day, or 5,000 per week.

"Today is only 500, but Wednesday we have 1,300, so that's when we're going to ramp up," he said. "Basically, young healthy people can't come in yet."

Everyone will return for a second Moderna vaccination in another 28 days, Carey said.

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