IDPH reports 4 COVID deaths each in St. Clair and Madison counties as viruses spread
Illinois public health officials advise residents to get vaccinated against COVID-19 and influenza and exercise caution when attending holiday gatherings as respiratory viruses spread at “concerning levels.”
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention rated 88 Illinois counties at elevated COVID-19 community levels in its Thursday update, including 33 counties at a high level and 55 counties at a medium level. Last week, 43 counties were at high and 43 were at medium.
St. Clair, Madison, Monroe, Washington, Clinton and Bond counties are at a medium COVID-19 community level, while Randolph, Calhoun, St. Louis City and St. Louis County are at high levels.
The Illinois Department of Public Health announced in a Dec. 23 statement it would transition from daily to weekly reporting of new COVID-19 cases and deaths by Jan. 1. The CDC made a similar change in October.
IDPH will now report weekly data on Wednesdays for the previous week ending Sunday. Daily updates will continue for intensive care unit availability and hospital admission data.
The CDC’s COVID-19 community levels are updated Thursdays and based on metrics from the past seven days, including new hospital admissions per 100,000 people, average percent of staffed, inpatient beds occupied by COVID patients and new cases per 100,000 people.
The federal agency advises people in high community level areas to wear a mask indoors and on public transportation, and people at a higher risk of severe illness should consider precautions in medium-level areas.
COVID-19 in St. Clair County, Illinois
IDPH officials reported 82 weekly COVID-19 deaths across the state, including four in St. Clair County and four in Madison County.
“Illinois continues to see most of its communities at elevated risk levels for COVID-19, including 33 counties that are currently at high risk,” IDPH Director Dr. Sameer Vohra said in the statement. “Although we are seeing some improvement in the number of high risk communities compared to last week, I encourage Illinoisians to continue to use preventative measures as we enter the holiday weekend and enjoy our holiday gatherings. We are still seeing COVID-19 community levels, along with flu and other respiratory illnesses rise in many counties. Our goal is to limit hospitalizations, preserve hospital beds, and protect those most vulnerable to serious health outcomes, especially those over 65 and very young children.”
Protective measures recommended by health care professionals include up-to-date vaccination, COVID-19 testing, wearing a high-quality mask and frequent hand-washing.
St. Clair County’s weekly case rate is at 170.21 per 100,000 people, according to the CDC, and there were 17.6 new COVID-19 hospital admissions per 100,000 individuals. More than 7.5% of the county’s staffed inpatient hospital beds are currently in use by patients with confirmed COVID-19.
Test positivity is at 8.42% in St. Clair County as of Dec. 19, and the rate of tests performed has declined by 8.57% as of Dec. 15. The CDC estimates 46 county residents have been hospitalized with COVID-19 from Dec. 13 to Dec. 20, a 52.4% increase of new admissions.
St. Clair County’s daily case rate is 25.2 per 100,000 people, and 14% of the county’s ICU beds were available as of Dec. 23. The seven-day rolling number of hospital admissions was four.
As of Thursday night, IDPH reported 1,814 people in Illinois were hospitalized with COVID-19, including 184 ICU patients and 117 individuals on ventilators. Across Illinois, 19% of ICU beds were available as of Dec. 23.
Testing and vaccination information is available online in St. Clair County.
Note: Some CDC data, such as test positivity rates, the number of tests performed and total case rate, update on different days. IDPH data and CDC data may not update at the same time, so metrics may vary across agencies.
