Multiple Ways to Get COVID Vaccine, Booster, and Testing Through Holiday Season

Positive cases of COVID-19 are surging in Illinois at a time when family and friends gather for the holidays.  The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) has partnered with SHIELD Illinois to offer 20 free community COVID-19 PCR rapid testing before the holidays. The State is also hosting more than 75 vaccination events through the holiday season, offering residents the opportunity to get vaccinated or boosted at sites in their communities.

“Illinois is leading the Midwest in vaccinating and boosting our residents, and we are adding even more ways to make it easier to get vaccinated and boosted,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “We appreciate the new federal resources to fight this omicron wave, and ask everyone to continue to follow our mask mandate and to make safe choices.

“Getting tested for COVID-19 is critically important to helping reduce the spread of this deadly virus” said Dr. Ngozi Ezike, Director of the Illinois Department of Public Health. “A year ago our holidays looked much different, now with widely available testing, vaccinations and boosters Illinoisans can gather safely with family and friends.”

Information on the 20 community testing sites can be found here:

In addition to these sites, the State of Illinois Community-Based testing sites remain operational serving Illinoisans at 10 locations across the state.  In addition to testing services, COVID-19 vaccines are also offered at the Aurora, Arlington Heights, South Holland, Fairview Heights and Peoria locations.

As we look ahead to the start of a new year, state and local health officials are urging all Illinoisans to resolve to beat COVID-19 in 2022 by getting vaccinated and/or getting a COVID-19 booster.

In addition to doctor’s offices, pharmacies, Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC), and local health departments, the State of Illinois offers one-day vaccine clinics throughout the state through the Community Partners Vaccination Program (CPVP).   This state-run program works to improve access and availability of the COVID-19 vaccine by working with trusted community partners.  Within the last two weeks, the Community Partners program administered more than 8,000 through one-day partnerships with Cook County Health.     

At these state-run vaccination clinics, vaccines are available to any Illinois resident, and no appointment, no identification or health insurance will be required.

Booster Eligibility

 All three vaccines offer booster doses.  Health officials are encouraging those who are fully vaccinated to receive a booster dose to maximize the protection from COVID-19.  While adults have the ability to mix-and-match their booster vaccine, 16- and 17-year-olds are only authorized to receive the Pfizer-BioNTech booster.

If you are unable to attend one of these three mass vaccination booster clinics, you can visit vaccines.gov to find a clinic near you.

The State is also offering staff assistance to hospitals through private staffing contracts, with over 1,100 healthcare staff deployed to hospitals across the state to date. This is in addition to the work to provide hospitals monoclonal Antibodies (mAbs) and antiviral treatments as quickly as they are made available.