Schaumburg Convention Center preparing for mass vaccination

This story has been updated to note the vaccination event taking place Thursday will be held at Schaumburg High School.

Volunteers were at work Tuesday preparing the Schaumburg Convention Center for Wednesday's COVID-19 mass vaccination, for which all appointment slots have been filled.

Appointments were open to people ages 65 and up who live in Arlington Heights, Buffalo Grove, Elk Grove Village, Hoffman Estates, Inverness, Mount Prospect, Palatine, Rolling Meadows, Schaumburg, Streamwood and Wheeling.

Those are the 11 member communities of the Northwest Suburban Illinois Joint Emergency Management System, or JEMS, which partnered with Jewel/Osco to host the event.

The grocery/pharmacy store provided 6,140 doses of the Pfizer vaccine for Wednesday, said Allison M. Albrecht, director of communications and outreach for the village of Schaumburg. Public notice went out Friday and all available online appointments were filled by Monday evening.

There will be no on-site registration Wednesday and only people with appointments will get a vaccine, Albrecht said. Those with appointments can be accompanied, if needed, by a caregiver, spouse or other individual.

A total of 110 volunteers were supplied by the 11 communities to staff the event, Albrecht said. That includes volunteers from community emergency response teams, Medical Reserve Corps, citizen police academy alumni, libraries, park districts and municipal employees.

Preparations were taking place Tuesday at the convention center, including a final walk-through and instructions to volunteers, Albrecht said.

Second doses will be given April 7, Albrecht said.

If there are no-shows Wednesday, "the JEMS communities have developed contingency plans to reach out to other individuals who were not able to register to ensure all remaining doses will be used," she said.

In the meantime, some appointments remained Tuesday for a vaccination event hosted by Schaumburg Township on Thursday at Schaumburg High School. Eligible essential workers and those over the age of 65 can make an appointment by calling (847) 285-4580.

The convention center was on a list of potential mass vaccination sites identified by the 11 communities, and Jewel made a visit before it was chosen, Albrecht said.

"Our 11 communities will continue to pursue future opportunities in which we can provide vaccine opportunities for our residents," she said, adding other facilities may be considered for future events.