Illinois COVID-19 hospitalizations drop under 5,000 for first time in a month

The number of patients in Illinois hospitals with COVID-19 dropped under 5,000 for the first time since Dec. 26, according to new data from the Illinois Department of Public Health.

As of late Wednesday, Illinois had 4,824 COVID-19 patients in the hospital. Of those, 864 were in intensive care units, the fewest since December 24, and 485 were on ventilators.

The IDPH reported 14,422 new confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 and 149 additional deaths Thursday.

The state’s seven-day rolling average for new cases dropped to 21,286 new cases a day, the lowest average since Jan. 1.

For Wednesday, the state administered 37,850 shots.

The state received the results of 224,498 COVID-19 tests in the 24 hours leading up to Thursday afternoon. The state’s positivity rate dropped to 10.7%

Illinois has seen 2,881,721 total cases of the virus, and 30,568 people have died. The state has conducted a total of 50,583,769 tests since the start of the pandemic.

Vaccine update: As of Thursday, the IDPH reported a total of 23,032,145 doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been distributed statewide, with 20,385,448 vaccines administered.

As of Thursday, 7,889,661 Illinoisans have been fully vaccinated, or 61.92% of the population. Illinois has a population of 12,741,080 people.

Also, 3,813,983 people have received a booster dose, or 29.9% of the state’s population. Among 5-11 year olds, 35.39% have received at least one vaccine dose and 26.22% are fully vaccinated.

CDC numbers:

Among Illinois residents 5 and older:

Fully Vaccinated: 8,345,415 (70%)

At Least 1 Dose: 9,517,375 (79.8%)

Among Illinois residents 12 and older:

Fully Vaccinated: 8,042,786 (74.2%)

At Least 1 Dose: 9,101,328 (84%)

Among Illinois residents 18 and older:

Fully Vaccinated: 7,445,953 (75.6%)

At Least 1 Dose: 8,421,455 (85.5%)

Among Illinois residents 65 and older:

Fully Vaccinated: 1,780,450 (87.1%)

At Least 1 Dose: 1,961,318 (95%)

There can be as much as a 72-hour delay in reporting from health care providers on vaccines administered.

In northern Illinois, here is the percentage of the population fully vaccinated by county:

Chicago: 64.56%

Suburban Cook: 68.77%

Lake: 66.17%

McHenry: 62.78%

DuPage: 72.46%

Kane: 62.69%

Will: 63.31%

Kendall: 65.37%

La Salle: 54.87%

Grundy: 54.98%

DeKalb: 53.91%

Ogle: 54.15%

Lee: 56.37%

Whiteside: 49.68%

Bureau: 52.93%

Regional update: All 11 regions in the state are in Phase 5.

Regional data from the IDPH remains on a three-day lag.

The North Suburban (McHenry and Lake counties) region’s positivity rate increased to 20.8%. Currently, 16% of ICU beds are available.

Within this region, McHenry County’s seven-day positivity rate average increased to 36.4%. Lake County, which does about two-thirds of the testing in the region, is reporting a rolling average of 13.6%.

Hospitalizations have decreased or remained stable 10 out of the past 10 days in this region. The region is down to a total of 304 COVID-19 patients in the hospital.

The West Suburban (DuPage and Kane counties) region’s positivity rate increased to 20.9%. Currently, 17% of ICU beds are available.

Within this region, Kane County’s seven-day positivity rate increased to 25.4%, and DuPage County’s increased to 18.4%.

Hospitalizations decreased or remained stable nine out of the past 10 days in this region. The region is down to 613 total COVID-19 patients in the hospital.

The South Suburban (Will and Kankakee counties) region’s positivity rate stayed flat at 15.2%. Currently, 11% of ICU beds are available.

Hospitalizations decreased or remained stable 10 out of the past 10 days in this region. The region is down to 250 total COVID-19 patients in the hospital.

The North (Boone, Carroll, DeKalb, Jo Daviess, Lee, Ogle, Stephenson, Whiteside and Winnebago counties) region’s positivity rate stayed flat at 18.5%.

Currently, 9% of ICU beds are available.

Within this region, DeKalb County’s positivity rate increased to 17.3%, Lee County’s rate decreased to 12.0%, and Whiteside County’s went down to 16.3%.

Hospitalizations decreased or remained stable 10 out of the past 10 days in this region. The region is down to 250 total COVID-19 hospitalizations.

The North-Central (Bureau, Fulton, Grundy, Henderson, Henry, Kendall, Knox, La Salle, Livingston, Marshall, McDonough, McLean, Mercer, Peoria, Putnam, Rock Island, Stark, Tazewell, Warren and Woodford counties) region’s positivity rate decreased to 15.3%.

Within this region, La Salle County’s seven-day positivity rate decreased to 15.0%. Currently, 14% of ICU beds are available. Hospitalizations decreased or remained stable for 10 out of the past 10 days. The region is down to a total of 421 COVID-19 patients in the hospital.

Chicago’s positivity rate fell to 11.0%. Currently, 11% of ICU beds are available. Hospitalizations decreased or remained stable for 10 out of the past 10 days.

Suburban Cook County’s positivity rate fell to 12.8%. Currently, 13% of ICU beds are available. Hospitalizations decreased or remained stable 10 out of the past 10 days in this region.