Walgreens is offering coronavirus vaccinations at nearly 80 new locations in Illinois, state officials announced Thursday.
The 78 new vaccination sites bring the pharmacy chain's total number of locations offering coronavirus vaccine doses to 170 in Illinois.
Earlier this week, the White House announced a new federal program that will bring 39,300 additional doses of COVID-19 vaccine each week to Walgreens locations in Illinois.
The additional doses will be distributed under a new Federal Retail Pharmacy Program that was announced Tuesday. Illinois and Chicago are two of the 15 jurisdictions in which Walgreens will offer these additional doses.
These thousands of additional doses are on top of the supply that Walgreens already receives through the Illinois Department of Public Health. The additional vaccinations through the new federal partnership will begin Feb. 11, according to the White House.
For a complete look at where you can get the coronavirus vaccine in Illinois or how to receive vaccine information for your area, click here.
In addition to the Walgreens, Illinois also announced the addition of two National Guard-led vaccination sites, bringing the total number of added locations this week to 80.
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In all, 390 vaccination sites have opened across the state since vaccinations began.
More than 3.2 million of the state's residents are eligible for vaccinations under Phase 1B, which includes people age 65 years and older as well as "frontline essential workers."
Current vaccination sites in the state are available by appointment only, but the state plans to launch walk-in locations in the coming weeks, officials previously said.
Still, despite the added locations, Illinois officials continue to urge patience, saying vaccine supply is limited.
"While we are working to increase the number of vaccines administered daily, we are limited by the amount of vaccine available and allocated by the federal government," Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker's office said in a release. "Vaccinations are available only by appointment at this time and we encourage people to check back frequently for open appointments. Until the supply is increased, there will be a great demand and we ask people to be patient. Individuals should be signing up for an appointment to receive their second dose while they are getting their first vaccination."
