Gov. JB Pritzker signs executive order to protect COVID-19 vaccine access under RFK Jr.

Gov. JB Pritzker on Friday signed an executive order that aims to protect COVID-19 vaccine access in Illinois amid increased barriers to the shots nationwide under federal Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

With COVID cases slightly on the rise in Chicago ahead of the seasonal uptick in respiratory illness, Pritzker’s order establishes a Statewide Vaccine Access Initiative and directs Illinois Department of Public Health Director Sameer Vohra to authorize pharmacies and other providers to administer the vaccines that have been proven to prevent severe cases.

Under Kennedy, a longtime vaccine skeptic, the federal Food and Drug Administration has approved the latest version of the COVID vaccine, but only for people 65 or older or who have unspecified high-risk medical conditions.

Soon, with consultation from the state’s Immunization Advisory Committee, Pritzker’s order could make it easier for people to get the shot outside the FDA’s limited recommendations.

“This is about making sure no family in Illinois is left wondering if they can protect themselves against preventable serious illness,” Pritzker said in a statement. “When the federal government abandons its responsibility, Illinois will step up. We will follow the science, listen to medical experts, and do everything in our power to enable families to receive the care they need.”

The order calls for state health officials to publish “plain-language guidance” on the shots and bolster school-based vaccine campaigns with local health departments, community health centers and other locations. It also requires state-regulated health insurance plans to cover the shots.

Pritzker’s office said upheaval at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has "led to the erosion of trust, caused confusion regarding vaccine guidelines, and threatened access to life-saving vaccines.” The Kennedy-led agency went against most major medical organizations in eliminating vaccine recommendations for many children, adults and pregnant patients.

The state’s Immunization Advisory Committee will meet Sept. 22 to issue its own recommendations on the vaccine by Sept. 26, opening the door for Vohra to authorize vaccinations at pharmacies and other providers.

“With confusing and conflicting guidelines from the federal government, the Executive Order ensures Illinois residents have the credible, transparent, and science-based guidance they need to make vaccine decisions for themselves and their family,” Vohra said in a statement. “We will work with every partner — from pharmacies to schools to rural clinics — to ensure access to critical vaccines to keep our Illinois residents and their families protected.”

Dr. Larry Kociolek, professor of pediatrics at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, said Pritzker’s order will establish a state-endorsed standard of care that will likely make it more favorable for doctors to be able to prescribe the COVID-19 vaccine to more people.

It remains unclear what private health insurers will decide to do.

Typically, insurers decide what they will cover based on recommendations issued by the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, said Kociolek, who also works at Lurie Children’s Hospital. That committee is expected to meet next week and many say their recommendations will likely mirror the FDA’s restrictions.

But insurers could decide instead to follow the state’s recommendations and cover the vaccines, Kociolek said, adding that it was also significant that Pritzker pledged resources to provide vaccines for residents.

For now, consumers in Illinois should not see changes to coverage for vaccines, said Laura Minzer, president of the Illinois Life and Health Insurance Council. The council will review the guidance set out by the Illinois Department of Insurance, as part of Pritzker’s order.

Pritzker’s order also calls for IDPH to create a plan to continue to provide free vaccines for children who receive them through a federally funded program known as Vaccines for Children if there is federal disruption to it.

“Recommendations and ability to prescribe is the first step,” Kociolek said. “The second step will be [to] ensure that patients who choose to be vaccinated are able to without substantial financial or other logistical barriers.”

Dr. Emily Landon, an infectious disease specialist, said Pritzker’s order is especially important for pharmacists, who will be able to give the vaccine with liability protection from the state. In other states, pharmacists have been refusing to give the vaccine to people outside the FDA guidelines because of liability concerns.

“It’s not just about [the] COVID vaccine,” Landon said. “There are other vaccines that we want to make sure that people are able to get. And this order is going to go a long way toward making those easier for patients, and that’s what we want to see.”