Southwest IL’s COVID-19 positivity rate soars above 16%, setting another record

The 7-day positivity rate for COVID-19 tests in southwestern Illinois set another record Monday, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health.

The 16.3% 7-day rolling average for the metro-east once again was at its highest level since the pandemic began. The previous high of 15.3% was set Sunday.

The new rate is based on tests recorded as of Nov. 13. A region’s positivity rate is its percentage of positive COVID-19 tests versus the number of tests taken over a 7-day period.

The state classifies the metro east as Region 4, which covers seven counties: St. Clair, Madison, Monroe, Bond, Washington, Clinton and Randolph. County-by-county data is available on the state health department’s website.

In addition, Monday marked the 27th straight day the region has been above the 8% threshold that triggered the latest restrictions in the seven-county area.

On Oct. 28, the state re-implemented tier 1 restrictions from Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s Restore Illinois plan after the metro-east reported three consecutive days with an 8% positivity or higher. Currently, all 11 regions in Illinois are under tier 1 restrictions or higher.

And, with the positivity rate continuing to rise, additional restrictions soon could be imposed in the metro-east. In order to have the restrictions lifted, the metro-east must report three consecutive days with a positivity rate of 6.5% or lower.

Additionally, the region reported a daily positivity rate of 18.8% on Monday, up from 15.2% on Sunday.

The region’s hospital bed capacity was at 22% on Monday, and its intensive care capacity was at 28% on Monday. State officials say new restrictions could result if the availability of ICU beds in the region’s hospitals falls below 20%.

State of Illinois announces new cases, deaths

Meanwhile, the state of Illinois announced 11,362 new COVID-19 cases Monday bringing the total to 585,248. The IDPH also announced 37 additional deaths, bringing the total to 10,779 since the pandemic began.

Also, within the past 24 hours, laboratories have reported 90,612 new tests for a total of 9,161,453.

As of Sunday night, 5,581 people in Illinois were reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19. Of those, 1,144 patients were in the ICU, and 514 patients with COVID-19 were on ventilators.

The preliminary 7-day statewide positivity for cases as a percent of total tests from Nov. 9-15 is 12.5%

This story was originally published November 16, 2020 at 12:29 PM.