1.1 million IL residents opt for new boosters as counties move to elevated COVID levels
After three consecutive weeks with zero Illinois counties at a high COVID-19 community level, three counties moved into a high level in the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Thursday update.
Warren, Knox and Saline counties were at a high level, while 26 counties were at a medium level. Medium level counties included Greene, Scott, Morgan, Perry, Jackson and others. St. Clair County remained at a low level.
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.
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COVID-19 in St. Clair County and across Illinois
The Illinois Department of Public Health has reported 11,955 new confirmed and probable COVID-19 cases and 43 deaths since Oct. 14.
The statewide daily case rate is 13.4 per 100,000 individuals, up from 11.7 last week, IDPH reported, and 19% of the state’s intensive care unit beds are available. The seven-day rolling number of hospital admissions is 87.
St. Clair County’s daily case rate is 12.1 per 100,000 people, according to IDPH, and 16% of the county’s ICU beds are available. The county’s seven-day rolling number of hospital admissions is two, and IDPH reported one COVID-19 death in St. Clair County.
The CDC reported St. Clair County’s weekly case rate is 78.94 per 100,000 people, up from 65.46 last week. There were 4.4 new COVID-19 hospital admissions per 100,000 individuals, and 2.5% of the county’s staffed inpatient beds are in use by patients with confirmed COVID-19.
Test positivity is at 3.99% in St. Clair County, up slightly from 3.85% last week, and the rate of tests performed has increased by 4.34%.
As of Thursday night, IDPH reported 1,060 individuals were in the hospital with COVID-19, including 124 patients in ICUs and 51 people on ventilators. Hospitalization numbers are up compared to last week, when IDPH reported 991 people in hospitals with 112 in ICUs and 39 people on ventilators.
Bivalent booster uptake in Illinois
IDPH reported in an Oct. 21 email more than 1.1 million Illinois residents have opted for bivalent booster shots since they were approved for use in early September, including 207,000 doses in the last week alone.
“For those who have not gotten the new bivalent booster or the flu shot, NOW is the best time to get fully immunized and protected, while COVID-19 community levels are still relatively low,” IDPH Director Dr. Sameer Vohra said in the statement. “As we are currently experiencing a sharp increase in severe pediatric respiratory diseases that is resulting in a shortage of pediatric beds – and at the same time facing the prospect of a fall and winter surge of COVID-19 and other illnesses affecting all of us – I am strongly recommending the latest COVID-19 and flu shots for all those who are eligible.”
More information about pediatric COVID-19 vaccines is available online from the Illinois Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
You can find COVID-19 testing and vaccination information 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.
This story was originally published October 23, 2022 at 7:00 AM.
