March 28, 2024
Coronavirus

IDPH: 0 counties at ‘high’ COVID-19 level as global health emergency ends

Data reporting to change after May 11

The latest COVID-19 community levels for Illinois as of Friday, May 5, 2023

The Illinois Department of Public Health announced the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is reporting zero counties in the state are at an elevated community level for COVID-19, compared with four the previous week. Of those, zero counties are at “high” risk for COVID-19, the same as the week before; and zero counties are at “medium” risk, compared with four last week.

IDPH Director Dr. Sameer Vohra welcomed the news Friday that the World Health Organization has declared an end to the global health emergency for COVID-19 that was in place since Jan. 30, 2020. Director Vohra said that with the national and state Public Health Emergencies for COVID -19 expiring on May 11, there will be changes to data collection and reporting on the virus:

• After May 11, the CDC has announced it will stop tracking and reporting COVID-19 cases at the community level, meaning that it will no longer be providing a weekly updates that show whether COVID-19 cases are at Low, Medium or High Level.

• Hospitals no longer will be required to report the number of COVID-19 patients in hospital beds or in the ICU or on ventilators.

• IDPH will continue to report the weekly number of COVID-19 hospital admissions, cases and deaths and weekly vaccination data.

• Data on COVID-19 and the flu will also continue to be reported via the Illinois Waste Water Surveillance System dashboard

“We want the public to know that due to changes in federal reporting requirements some of the COVID-19 data that we have been collecting will change after May 11,” IDPH Director Dr. Sameer Vohra said. “However, IDPH will still have reliable methods for tracking COVID-19 in Illinois. IDPH will continue its focus on protecting the public from COVID-19, especially those individuals who are vulnerable to serious illness. With the World Health Organization’s news today of the end of the global health emergency, as well as the national public health emergency and statewide disaster declarations ending in less than a week, it is very good news that cases remain low. All counties in Illinois are now at Low Community Level for COVID-19 and this marks the seventh straight week with zero counties at a high COVID-19 community level.”

IDPH has recorded a total of 4,135,808 cases and 36,850 deaths, in 102 counties in Illinois since the beginning of the pandemic. The department is reporting 3,850 new confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 in Illinois in the week ending April 30, and five deaths.

A total of 26,181,059 vaccines have been administered in Illinois as of Friday. The seven-day rolling average of vaccines administered daily is 3,597 doses, including the bivalent booster and first doses. Since April 28, 25,179 vaccine doses were reported administered in Illinois. Of Illinois’ total population, more than 79% have received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose, more than 71% have completed their primary series of COVID-19 vaccines, and more than 20% have received the bivalent booster dose, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

As of Thursday night, 404 individuals in Illinois were reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19, the fewest since July 4, 2021. Of those, 46 patients were in the ICU, the fewest since the start of the pandemic. And 25 patients with COVID-19 were on ventilators. The preliminary seven-day statewide case rate is 31 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 Illinoisans.

Weekly case rate per 100,000: 30.2

Percentage of ICU beds available: 20%

COVID-19-diagnosed hospital admissions (seven-day rolling average): 36 (Down 9 from a week ago)

Weekly deaths reported: 5 (Down 14 from the previous week)

“We want the public to know that due to changes in federal reporting requirements some of the COVID-19 data that we have been collecting will change after May 11″

—  IDPH Director Dr. Sameer Vohra
John Sahly

John Sahly

John Sahly is the digital editor for the Shaw Local News Network. He has been with Shaw Media since 2008, previously serving as the Northwest Herald's digital editor, and the Daily Chronicle sports editor and sports reporter.