Coronavirus In Illinois: 1,532 New COVID-19 Cases, 19 Additional Deaths; 4 Counties At Warning Level
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Illinois reported 1,532 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday, including 19 additional deaths, as the state surpassed 44,000 virus tests for the second time.
State officials also said four counties -- Adams, LaSalle, Peoria, and Randolph -- have entered a "warning level" for COVID-19, due to outbreaks associated with large gatherings and other "risky behavior."
The Illinois Department of Public Health said the state has reported a total of 168,457 coronavirus cases and 7,385 deaths since the start of the pandemic.
Illinois has conducted 44,330 COVID-19 tests in the past day, the second highest total number of daily tests so far, for a positive test rate of 3.5% on Friday. The statewide seven-day average positivity rate as of Friday was 3.4%, up from 2.6% two weeks ago.
As of Thursday night, 1,471 virus patients were being treated in Illinois hospitals, including 325 in intensive care, and 115 on ventilators. The state's COVID-19 hospitalization numbers have been relatively flat since late June.
So far, the vast majority of COVID-19 patients have recovered from the disease, with a 95% statewide recovery rate as of Thursday. The state's recovery rate calculates the number of people who have tested positive for the virus, and have survived at least 42 days after their test.
State officials said recent outbreaks in Adams, LaSalle, Peoria, and Randolph counties have been linked to large gatherings at local businesses, people traveling to states considered virus hot spots, and other "risky behavior."
According to IDPH:
- Outbreaks in Adams County, along the Missouri border, have been associated with large social events, houses of worship, youth sports events, health care exposure, and travel to hot spots in Missori and Iowa.
- Increases in cases in LaSalle County, particularly among people under age 29, have been linked to large family and social gatherings, younger people visiting bars and other larger social events, and failure to follow requirements to wear a mask.
- Increases in people under age 29 in Peoria County have been linked to large gatherings such as July 4th parties, and people traveling to Florida, Iowa, Texas, and Wisconsin.
- Outbreaks in Randolph County have been linked to numerous bars not complying with social distancing and face covering mandates, a large party with more than 200 people in attendance, and other congregate settings.
IDPH said it uses several indicators and warning signs to determine if a county is at increased risk of COVID-19 outbreaks:
• New cases per 100,000 people. If there are 50 or more new cases per 100,000 people in the county, this triggers a warning.
• Number of deaths. This metric indicates a warning when the number of deaths increases more than 20% for two consecutive weeks.
• Weekly test positivity. This metric indicates a warning when the 7-day test positivity rate rises above 8%.
• ICU availability. If there are fewer than 20% of intensive care units available in the region, this triggers a warning.
• Weekly emergency department visits. This metric indicates a warning when the weekly percent of COVID-19-like-illness emergency department visits increase by more than 20% for two consecutive weeks.
• 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.
• Tests performed. This metric is used to provide context and indicate if more testing is needed in the county.
• Clusters. This metric looks at the percent of COVID-19 cases associated with clusters or outbreaks and is used to understand large increase in cases.
