IDPH reports more than 11,000 new COVID-19 cases in one week. Here’s the latest data
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention rated 20 Illinois counties at medium COVID-19 community levels in its Thursday update, up from 19 at medium last week.
For the second consecutive week, no Illinois counties were at a high.
Perry, Jackson, Jefferson, Franklin, Williamson and Johnson were among the medium level counties, along with St. Louis City and St. Louis County. St. Clair, Madison, Monroe, Washington, Randolph and Clinton were at low levels.
The Illinois Department of Public Health announced in a Feb. 24 press release the department has recorded 11,248 new confirmed and probable COVID-19 cases and 37 deaths for the week ending Feb. 19.
The department also announced the launch of a new telehealth test-to-treat program in partnership with Southern Illinois University Medicine. People who test positive for COVID-19 can call 217-545-5100 from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday to schedule a telehealth appointment to determine if treatment is recommended.
“We are happy to report that COVID-19 community levels continue to remain stable this week,” IDPH Director Dr. Sameer Vohra said in the statement. “However, we know that the virus is still circulating with the potential to cause serious illness, especially to those most at-risk. It is critical for those individuals to have quick and easy access to medical providers to determine if COVID-19 treatment is recommended. We are grateful to offer this new telehealth test to treat service to help protect our residents across Illinois.”
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.
People in high community level areas are advised to wear a mask indoors and on public transportation, and the federal agency says people at a higher risk of severe illness should consider precautions in medium-level areas.
The preliminary seven-day statewide case rate is 88 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 Illinois residents, according to IDPH. Last week’s rate was 85 per 100,000.
COVID-19 in St. Clair County
St. Clair County’s weekly case rate increased from 66.23 to 78.17 per 100,000 people this week, the CDC reports.
Hospitalization rates increased slightly in St. Clair County, with 8 new COVID-19 hospital admissions per 100,000 people and 4.1% of staffed inpatient hospital beds in use by patients with confirmed COVID-19.
As of Feb. 23, 21% of hospital beds were available in Illinois and intensive care unit availability was at 18%, according to IDPH. The department reported 959 Illinois residents were hospitalized with COVID-19 as of Thursday night, including 108 people ICUs and 41 individuals on ventilators.
Test positivity was at 3.64% in St. Clair County as of Feb. 20, and the rate of tests performed was up 9.3% as of Feb. 16.
IDPH has reported 80,830 COVID-19 cases and 800 deaths in St. Clair County since the beginning of the pandemic.
Information about vaccination and testing is available online in St. Clair County.
Note: Some CDC data, such as test positivity rates, the number of tests performed and weekly case rate, update on different days. IDPH data and CDC data may not update at the same time, so metrics may vary across agencies.
This story was originally published February 27, 2023 at 9:17 AM.
