Vaccine Distribution Phases
COVID-19 Vaccine Phases and Rollout
GOAL: Prevent COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths
- Phase opens to whole group, with efforts to prioritize by COVID-19 risk in order below
- Most vaccinated in residential and healthcare settings (e.g. clinics, hospitals, pharmacies)
GOAL: Preserve services essential to functioning of society and prevent COVID-19 outbreaks
- Phase opens to whole group, with efforts to prioritize by COVID-19 risk in order below
- Most vaccinated in employer-based settings
Long-term care and other residential healthcare facilities
- Skilled Nursing Facilities
- Assisted Living Facilities
- Behavioral health residential facilities
- Developmentally disabled residential facilities
Healthcare workers
- Hospital-based
- Non-hospital based (e.g. doctors' offices, dentists' offices, outpatient clinics, laboratories, pharmacies, home health)
- Community-based (e.g. Protect Chicago outreach)
Chicagoans age 65 and older
- Chicagoans age 75 and older
- Chicagoans age 65-74 with underlying medical conditions
- All Chicagoans age 65 and older
Non-healthcare residential settings
- Homeless shelters
- Correctional settings
- Other residential settings with local outbreaks
Frontline essential workers
- Correctional workers and first responders
- Grocery store workers and manufacturing/factory settings with outbreaks
- Daycare, K-12 and early education workers
- Public transit, other manufacturing, and agriculture workers
- Continuity of government and postal workers
- Caregivers of medically fragile children or adults
Chicagoans age 16-64 with underlying medical conditions
The following conditions are known to increase or may increase the risk of developing severe illness from COVID-19. Individuals with the following conditions are eligible for vaccination in locations open to Chicago residents.
- Cancer (current diagnosis)
- Cardiac, cardiovascular, and cerebrovascular disorders (including heart disease, coronary artery disease, and hypertension or high blood pressure)
- Chronic Kidney Disease
- Chronic respiratory disorders (including cystic fibrosis, moderate to severe asthma, pulmonary fibrosis, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease/emphysema [COPD])
- Diabetes (Type 1 and Type 2)
- Disability: physical, developmental, visual, hearing, or mental
- Neurologic conditions (including dementia)
- Down Syndrome
- Immunocompromised state (weakened immune system) including from blood or bone marrow transplant, immune deficiencies, HIV, use of corticosteroids, or use of other immune weakening medicines
- Liver disease (including hepatitis)
- Pregnancy
- Obesity: BMI ≥30 kg/m2
- Schizophrenia spectrum disorders
- Sickle Cell Disease
- Thalassemia
All other essential workers
- Clergy and religious organizations
- Energy
- Finance
- Food and beverage service
- Higher Education
- Information Technology and communications
- Legal
- Media
- Other Community- or Government-based Operations and Essential Functions
- Personal Care Services and hygiene
- Public health
- Public safety
- Retail
- Shelter and Housing
- Transportation and Logistics
- Water and wastewater
A more detailed list of essential workers included in phase 1c is below.
All Chicagoans age 16* and older
The Pfizer vaccine was authorized and recommended for use for individuals age 12 to 17 by the Food and Drug administration (FDA) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Chicagoans age 12-17 were able to receive vaccination only at sites offering Pfizer vaccine.




CATEGORIES | CITY OF CHICAGO DEFINITION | CHICAGO ESTIMATE* |
People 65 years of age and older |
People 65 years of age and older; where possible, prioritizing Chicagoans 75 years and older and Chicagoans age 65-74 with underlying medical conditions |
363,000 |
Non-healthcare residential settings |
Homeless shelters, women’s shelters, adult day care programs, correctional settings (jail officers, juvenile facility staff, workers providing in-person support, detainees), and other non-healthcare residential settings that have experienced outbreaks (e.g. convents) |
21,000 |
First Responders |
Fire, law enforcement, 911 workers, security personnel, school officers |
42,000 |
Grocery Store Workers |
Baggers, cashiers, stockers, pick-up, customer service, those working in feeding or at food pantries |
17,000 |
Education |
Teachers, principals, student support, and student aides at pre-K-12 schools, day care staff |
142,500 |
Public Transit Workers |
Bus drivers, train conductors, flight crews, taxi drivers and ride sharing services (workers that have worked an average of at least 20 hours per week for the last three months), and all persons working for local transit agencies unable to work from home |
60,000 |
Manufacturing |
Industrial production of goods for distribution to retail, wholesale or other manufacturers |
53,000 |
Food and Agriculture |
Processing plants, veterinary health, livestock services, animal care, greenhouses and indoor locations where food is grown en masse |
10,000 |
Government |
U.S. Postal Service Workers; City government leaders and City elected officials critical to maintain continuity of governmental operations and services |
5,300 |
Caregivers |
Parents, including foster parents, and other primary caregivers of medically fragile children or adults who live at home but require a level of ongoing medical care typically provided by a rehabilitation hospital or skilled nursing facility |
~35,000 |
*Sources: 2019 American Community Survey, Civilian employed population 16 years and older. Bureau of Labor and Statistics, Annual Averages 2019. Personal communication with industry and residential settings. Statistica, Home Care in the U.S.
CATEGORIES | CITY OF CHICAGO DEFINITION |
Underlying medical conditions |
Cancer (current diagnosis), Cardiac, cardiovascular, and cerebrovascular disorders (including heart disease, coronary artery disease, and hypertension or high blood pressure), Chronic Kidney Disease, Chronic respiratory disorders (including cystic fibrosis, moderate to severe asthma, pulmonary fibrosis, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease/emphysema [COPD]), Diabetes (Type 1 and Type 2), Disability: physical, developmental, visual, hearing, or mental, Neurologic conditions (including dementia), Down Syndrome, Immunocompromised state (weakened immune system) including from blood or bone marrow transplant, immune deficiencies, HIV, use of corticosteroids, or use of other immune weakening medicines, Liver disease (including hepatitis), Pregnancy, Obesity: BMI ≥30 kg/m2, Schizophrenia spectrum disorders, Sickle Cell Disease, Thalassemia |
Clergy and religious organizations |
Clergy, church workers, and religious organizations |
Energy |
Workers supporting the energy sector, including those involved in energy manufacturing, distribution, repair |
Finance |
Banks; currency exchanges; consumer lending; credit unions; appraisers; title companies; financial markets; financial institutions; institutions that sell financial services; accounting services, and insurance services |
Food and beverage service |
Restaurant and other facilities that prepare and serve food (including bars); entities that provide food services |
Higher education |
Workers in educational institutions – including junior colleges, four-year colleges, and universities, technical schools, trade schools, educational support services, and administration of education programs |
Information technology and communications |
Internet, video and telecommunications systems, consumer electronics repair, computer and office machine repair |
Legal |
Workers providing legal services or supporting the operations of the judicial system, including judges, lawyers, paralegals, legal assistants, process servers, couriers, bail bond agents, parole officers, probation offices, court personnel, and others providing legal assistance or performing legal functions |
Media |
Newspapers, periodicals, television, radio, and other media services, news dealers and newsstands, broadcasting, news syndicates, printing, and book publishers |
Other community- or government-based operations and essential functions |
Other governmental employees; community based essential functions (e.g. urban planning, offices that provide basic needs such as food, childcare, shelter, and social services); workers in libraries |
Personal care services and hygiene |
Businesses that provide personal care services, such as hair, nails, and non-medical massage. Laundromats, dry cleaners, industrial laundry services, and laundry service providers |
Public health |
Public health entities; pharmaceutical, medical device and equipment, and biotechnology companies |
Public safety |
Workers that ensure public safety systems function properly, including building inspectors, civil engineers, chemical engineers, aerospace engineers and hazardous materials responders. Workers who construct and maintain roads, highways, railroads, and ports. Cybersecurity operations workers |
Retail | Workers in retail stores including but not limited to stores that sell alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, medication not requiring a medical prescription, other non-grocery products (e.g. electronics, optical goods, books, etc.), other household consumer products, wholesalers, licensed cannabis dispensaries and cultivation centers |
Shelter and housing | Hardware stores and businesses; construction and maintenance of buildings, real estate; hotel and motel workers |
Transportation and logistics | Workers at gas stations; auto and bike supply and repair; businesses that supply shipping and delivery services; couriers; warehouses; private mail; Airline workers not included in 1b; workers in rail, water, truck, charter bus transportation or transportation rental |
Water and wastewater | Workers involved in wastewater treatment and operations; sanitary and storm maintenance crews performing emergency and essential maintenance of systems |