Positivity rate falls, while ICU bed availability and vaccinations rise in southwest IL

COVID-19 positivity rates dropped again this week in southwestern Illinois — with no county reporting higher than 5.1% — while vaccinations and ICU bed availability increased.

Here is a breakdown of vaccine distribution and positivity rate data from Oct. 14-20 in Region 4.

Region 4 vaccinations

According to data released by the state health department Wednesday, 328,701 Region 4 residents have been fully vaccinated out of the estimated 660,225 who live in the region, or approximately 49.7%. That’s an increase of 2,576 people from the previous week.

Region 4 consists of Bond, Clinton, Madison, Monroe, Randolph, St. Clair and Washington counties.

The vaccination numbers for Region 4 increased slightly this week while still remaining fairly steady: 3,480 people became fully vaccinated from Sept. 2-8; nearly 4,500 people became fully vaccinated from Sept. 9-15; 3,883 people became fully vaccinated from Sept. 16-22; 3,496 people became fully vaccinated from Sept. 23-29; 3,093 people became fully vaccinated from Sept. 30-Oct. 6; and 2,436 people became fully vaccinated from Oct. 7-13.

Madison and St. Clair counties continue to vaccinate the most individuals in Region 4, combining to fully vaccinate 2,143 people from Oct. 14-20. That’s an increase from the 1,885 people who became fully vaccinated the week of Oct. 7-13.

Vaccine breakdown by county

Here is the latest vaccination data from Region 4:

• Bond County: 6,855 people have been fully vaccinated, or 41.22% of the population. That’s an increase of 57 people from one week ago.
• Clinton County: 18,664 people have been fully vaccinated, or 49.59% of the population. That’s an increase of 136 people from one week ago.
• Madison County: 134,994 people have been fully vaccinated, or 51.04% of the population. That’s an increase of 990 people from one week ago.
• Monroe County: 18,491 people have been fully vaccinated, or 53.85% of the population. That’s an increase of 83 people from one week ago.
• Randolph County: 14,189 people have been fully vaccinated, or 44.19% of the population. That’s an increase of 104 people from one week ago.
• St. Clair County: 128,477 people have been fully vaccinated, or 49.21% of the population. That’s an increase of 1,153 people from one week ago.
• Washington County: 7,031 people have been fully vaccinated, or 50.24% of the population. That’s an increase of 53 people from one week ago.

For state totals, according to Wednesday’s data, 7,183,367 Illinois residents have been fully vaccinated, or 56.38%. That’s an increase of 47,980 people from the previous week after the state reported 45,558 people became fully vaccinated from Oct. 7-13.

Region 4 positivity rates

The positivity rate for Region 4 as a whole and among its individual counties continues to show promising trends.

Positivity rate is one key metric the Illinois Department of Public Health measures to determine whether to reinstate restrictions.

Below are some trends for Region 4 from Oct. 14-20, according to data released by the state health department Wednesday.

• The positivity rate for Region 4 dropped from 3.6% last week to 3.1% this week.
• The Region 4 postivity rate has remained below 8% since Aug. 31 and below 5% since Sept. 22. Additionally, it has been at 3.6% or below since Oct. 9.
• All seven counties reported decreases from the beginning of September, as did Region 4 as a whole.
  
  
• All seven counties reported single-digit positivity rates.
• The highest positivity rate reported by any of the seven counties was 5.1%.

Here is a more detailed look at the seven-day rate fluctuations for Region 4 counties from one week ago and from the beginning of September, according to the most recent data released by the state health department Wednesday:

• Region 4: 3.1% on Oct. 17; 3.6% on Oct. 10; and 6.6% on Sept. 3.
  
  
• Bond County: 4.3% on Oct. 17; 4.9% on Oct. 10; and 6.4% on Sept. 3.
  
  
• Clinton County: 4.5% on Oct. 17; 2.5% on Oct. 10; and 5.5% on Sept. 3.
• Madison County: 3.2% on Oct. 17; 4.1% on Oct. 10; and 6.9% on Sept. 3.
• Monroe County: 3.8% on Oct. 17; 4.7% on Oct. 10; and 8.1% on Sept. 3.
• Randolph County: 5.1% on Oct. 17; 4.4% on Oct. 10; and 6.0% on Sept. 3.
• St. Clair County: 2.4% on Oct. 17’; 3.1% on Oct. 10; and 6.4% on Sept. 3.
• Washington County: 2.1% on Oct. 17; 3.6% on Oct. 10; and 10.9% on Sept. 3.

Region 4’s ICU bed availability rose slightly from 27% last week to 29% on Wednesday, according to state data. It was at 21% in early September.