ROCK ISLAND, Ill. — The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) is now allowing county health departments across the state to give out a second round of COVID-19 booster shots.
That announcement, which was received by the Rock Island County Health Department from IDPH at about noon on Wednesday, follows the recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday for certain groups of people to get a second booster dose.
Those booster shots are recommended for anyone age 50 and older, or for people who are 12 years old and older and are also immunocompromised, according to a statement from the Rock Island County Health Department.
That recommendation mirrors the recommendation from the FDA, which was posted on the CDC's website on Tuesday.
The recommendation means people who got their first booster shot could get this second shot four months after the previous shot, said Janet Hill, the chief operating officer with the Rock Island County Health Department.
"It is a decision that people need to make, but this is trying to reduce the number of people that become seriously ill, and if you were to get infected after getting a booster shot, you're much more likely to have a very mild case," Hill said.
Hill said the health department saw a spike in cases at about this time last year after the spring break season. While Hill said it is too early to tell if that's the case again this year, health department leaders are still encouraging vaccination to keep case numbers down.
As of Wednesday night, the entire state of Illinois and the entire state of Iowa were both listed as having a "low" level of community spread, according to the CDC.
Even with vaccines widely available, the health department does not plan to stop its twice-weekly vaccine clinics, Hill said.
Hill said there is still enough demand, even though demand has slowed, to sustain the walk-in clinics for now. Hill said the health department could move to an appointment-based system in the future based on need.
The new, second round of booster doses will be available at the Rock Island County Health Department starting Friday, April 1.
The health department will offer Pfizer booster shots on Fridays and Moderna booster shots on Tuesdays. This follows the same schedule the department has used when giving out first and second doses of the vaccines.
The health department will be available to give these booster shots on Tuesdays and Fridays between 9 a.m. and noon and again between 1 p.m. and 4 p.m.