Grundy County releases COVID-19 update

MORRIS – The Grundy County Health Department provided information about vaccination, cases, mitigation and testing in a news release Friday.

Vaccinations (as of April 15)

• Total number of doses received in Grundy County: 34,452

• Total number of doses administered in Grundy County: 29,418

• Total number of doses administered to Grundy County residents: 28,848

Residents are advised that when reporting total doses administered, the Grundy County Health Department does not distinguish between first and second doses. Additionally, Grundy County residents may be vaccinated in other counties and residents of other counties may be vaccinated within Grundy County, depending on vocation and other factors. All doses received by the Grundy County Health Department have been allocated for use within the coming days.

• Total number of Grundy County residents fully vaccinated: 11,845

• Percentage of Grundy County population fully vaccinated: 23.24%

• Fully vaccinated Grundy County residents ages 16 to 64: 7,280

• Fully vaccinated Grundy County residents ages 65 and older: 4,565

Grundy County’s mass vaccination site remains supported through the assistance of local volunteers, the Illinois National Guard and contractual nurses. Appointments are offered to any Illinois resident of the appropriate age. The Pfizer vaccine is authorized for emergency use in those 16 and older, while Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are authorized for those 18 and older.

However, as of April 13, the Grundy County Health Department has paused the use of J&J COVID-19 vaccine following guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and as required by the Illinois Department of Public Health. This was done out of an abundance of caution due to six cases of a rare and severe type of blood clot in individuals who received J&J vaccine in the U.S., out of over 6.8 million doses given. There are no known cases of vaccine-related blood clotting in Grundy County.

Residents may visit the Grundy County Health Department website at the start of each week to learn of available clinics for that week. Residents also may call 815-941-3404 to schedule over the phone.

Below are the weekly first-dose allocations for Grundy County:

• Week of April 19: 1,000 doses of Moderna vaccine.

• Week of April 26: 600 doses of Moderna vaccine.

Testing

Testing is available throughout the county through local hospital systems, and protocol at each location is subject to change based on availability of resources. Mobile testing units, as organized by the IDPH, also are available throughout the region. Residents seeking testing may consider visiting the dph.illinois.gov to learn about mobile and community-based testing sites throughout Illinois.

Cases

The total number of positive cases in Grundy County since March 2020 is 5,596 people, and 71 residents have died from COVID-19 complications.

The Grundy County Health Department currently is following 53 people who have tested positive and are in isolation, along with each of their close contacts.

Recent data shows that Grundy County is seeing a smaller percentage of positive cases among residents 60 and older.

Mitigation

Region: Region 2 currently is in Phase 4 mitigation and will remain so until the metrics to move to the bridge phase been met. Details about each phase and metrics for moving between them can be found at dph.illinois.gov.

County: Grundy County returned to an “orange” warning level, according to the IDPH. The last time the Grundy County Health Department reported that the county was in “orange” status was early March. The IDPH uses numerous indicators when determining if a county is experiencing stable or increasing COVID-19 activity. Below are the updated metrics for Grundy County:

• New cases per 100,000 people: If there are more than 50 new cases per 100,000 people in the county, a warning is triggered. In the past week, there were 161 new cases per 100,000 people in Grundy County, up from 108 the previous week.

• Number of deaths: This metric indicates a warning when the weekly number of deaths increases by more than 20% for two consecutive weeks. In the past week, there was one death in Grundy County, the same amount as the previous week.

• Weekly test positivity: This metric indicates a warning when the seven-day test positivity rate rises above 8%. In the past week, the positivity rate in Grundy County was 6.4%, up from 4.2% the previous week.

• Tests performed: This metric is used to provide context and indicate if more testing is needed in the county. In the past week, 1,528 tests were performed in Grundy County, up from 1,296 the previous week.

• Weekly emergency department visits: This metric indicates a warning when the weekly percent of emergency department visits for COVID-19-like illness increases by more than 20% for two consecutive weeks. In the past week, 4.4% of the emergency department visits in Grundy County were for COVID-19-like illness, up from 2.9% the previous week.

• Weekly hospital admissions: A warning is triggered when the weekly number of hospital admissions for COVID-19-like illness increases by more than 20% for two consecutive weeks. In the past week, there were five hospital admissions for COVID-19-like illness, up from fewer than five the previous week.

• Clusters: This metric looks at the percent of COVID-19 cases associated with clusters or outbreaks and is used to understand large increases in cases. In the past week, 3.1% of the cases in Grundy County were associated with clusters, down from 4.5% the previous three weeks.

• Intensive care unit bed availability: A warning is triggered if less than 20% of ICU beds are available in the region. In the past week, 18% of Grundy County’s ICU beds were available, down from 22% the previous week.