Healthcare leaders ask for patience with vaccine rollout in 2021

The phone lines at Sawtooth Mountain Clinic were busy during the final week of the year with local residents seeking information about the COVID-19 vaccine.

As medical staff and others involved with healthcare in the community started to receive their vaccine in late December, many North Shore residents started asking a recurring question: ‘When can I get my vaccine?'

Healthcare leaders in Cook County, including Public Health Supervisor Grace Grinager and Sawtooth Mountain Clinic CEO Kate Surbaugh are requesting patience from the community as the vaccine timeline is navigated in 2021. The short answer is that it will take time to receive and distribute the COVID-19 vaccine to other essential workers and the general public, Surbaugh said during a recent interview on WTIP. For example, both Surbaugh and Grinager explained the fact that there is not a list to sign up to receive the vaccine at this time and that patience is going to be required for an effective rollout of the vaccine.

The audio below is Surbaugh’s full interview from Dec. 30 with WTIP’s Joe Friedrichs.