ROCKFORD The Winnebago County Health Department will offer COVID-19 vaccines to all Illinoisans age 16 and older on Wednesday with no appointment needed.
The vaccines will be administered at the community vaccination site located at the former Kmart at 1321 Sandy Hollow Road. For residents under the age of 18, a parent or legal guardian is required to accompany the patient.
ROCKFORD Individuals behind in their rent and utilities because of a COVID-19-related hardship are now eligible to apply for rental assistance.
Earlier this year, Winnebago County Board Chairman Joe Chiarelli announced the county applied for and received an $8.3 million federally funded Emergency Rental Assistance Grant to help tenants and landlords with past-due rent payments.
On Monday, he said the county has partnered with the city of Rockford s Human Services Department to administer the program and shared how tenants and landlords can apply for funding. This is a very important move for our county for people who have been impacted by COVID-19, Chiarelli said.
ROCKFORD Monday marks one year since the first coronavirus case was confirmed in Winnebago County.
The virus was still in its infancy in the United States when it was detected here. Fewer than 100 cases had been confirmed in Illinois when a man in his 60s, who lived in rural Winnebago County, tested positive at a hospital after being evaluated by Immediate Urgent Care.
The first case here came four days after the World Health Organization declared the rapidly spreading virus a pandemic, leading to more than 530,000 deaths across the country and upending every aspect of daily life from sports, to travel, to how we work, shop, dine and gather.