Nearly 12,000 suburban Cook County students lack required vaccinations. Park Ridge and Niles families have until Oct. 15 to get their children up to date or face school exclusion.
The Cook County Department of Public Health (CCDPH) launched its "Every Vaccine Counts" campaign on Tuesday, Sept. 15, offering free vaccination clinics across suburban Cook County through October. The clinics serve children ages 6 months through 18 years, regardless of insurance or immigration status.
The number of unvaccinated students has nearly doubled over the past decade. In the 2014-15 school year, 6,408 suburban Cook County students were unprotected. By 2025-26, that figure had climbed to 11,978, according to CCDPH data released in a July 15 press release.
"Getting children vaccinated shouldn't depend on where a family lives or whether they can easily get to a doctor's office," Dr. Kiran Joshi, CCDPH's chief operating officer, said in the campaign announcement. "By bringing vaccination clinics directly into communities, we are working to make it easier for families to get the protection their children need."
CCDPH had already hosted 60 clinics this season as of the Sept. 15 announcement. Additional clinics are planned in communities with lower vaccination rates. The July press release listed Norridge and Rolling Meadows among scheduled clinic locations, both near Park Ridge and Niles.
Under Illinois law, students must have proof of immunization or a valid medical or religious exemption on file by Oct. 15. Children without documentation by that date can be excluded from school, according to CCDPH.
The deadline carries real urgency. Kane County reported its second measles case of 2026 on Sept. 9, linked to an unvaccinated student at Kaneland High School in Maple Park, the Chicago Tribune reported. The first case generated up to 1,600 potential exposures.
Suburban Cook County's overall vaccination rates ticked up slightly in 2025-26, the first increase in more than a decade. Rates for measles, mumps, rubella, DTP, polio and chickenpox ranged from about 96.7% to 97%, according to CCDPH. Health officials say 95% coverage is needed to sustain herd immunity. But the department noted that students who aren't fully up to date on vaccinations are disproportionately concentrated in private schools, where religious exemptions continue to rise.
The free clinics cover a range of required and recommended vaccines: DTP/DTaP/Tdap, polio, MMR, hepatitis B, chickenpox, meningitis, pneumococcal and HPV. Vaccines are provided by CIMPAR with funding from the Illinois Department of Public Health.
Families should bring their child's vaccination record if available. CCDPH encourages families to register in advance. Schools and community organizations can also request a clinic through CCDPH's online form.
For clinic dates and locations, families can visit everyvaccinecounts.com.
