Summary
OnAir Post: Covid-19
News
Capitol News Illinois, – November 3, 2021
One day after the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended that children between the ages of 5 and 11 receive the COVID-19 vaccine manufactured by Pfizer and BioNTech, the Illinois Department of Public Health adopted the same recommendations Wednesday.
That vaccine had previously been approved for people 12 years of age and older. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized its emergency use for 5- to 11-year-olds last week, and the CDC made the recommendation official Tuesday night.
IDPH Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said in a news release that medical experts have reviewed data from clinical trials that included more than 3,000 children, leading to the CDC recommendation. Those trials showed the vaccine to be more than 90 percent effective in preventing COVID-19 in children in the age group.
Children in the trials saw the same side effects as adolescents and adults but to a lesser extent, according to IDPH. The side effects included injection site pain, redness and swelling, fatigue, headache, muscle or joint pain, chills, and fever. They generally lasted one to two days.
State officials have urged parents with questions or who are wishing to vaccinate their children to call their pediatrician’s office to learn more.
ABC7 Chicago, – September 3, 2021
Friday, September 3, 2021 4:16PM
All health care workers and K-12 teachers and staff, as well as higher education personnel and students, will now be required to get an initial dose of the COVID-19 vaccine by Sept. 19, 2021.
IDPH also reported 30,319 new confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19, and 178 related deaths in just a week. That’s up 18% from the 25,636 reported one week prior.
There have been 1,538,324 total COVID cases, including 24,067 deaths in the state since the pandemic began.