COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations hit new highs

Illinois eclipsed its previous high for COVID-19 cases Wednesday, as hospitalizations hit record numbers for the third straight day.

As of Tuesday, 6,842 Illinoisans were in the hospital with COVID-19, up 242 from Monday and up 1,371 from the prior week.

Of the patients in the hospital, 1,135 were in intensive care units, up 17 from Monday and up 151 from the prior week. There were 663 patients on ventilators, up five from Monday and up 107 from the prior week.

The Illinois Department of Public Health reported 32,279 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, surpassing the previous single-day high of 31,461 cases set on Dec. 31, 2021.

The total COVID-19 case count is at 2,295,445. The death toll is 28,156 after 79 deaths were reported Wednesday.

The seven-day average for new cases is 25,183, up 8,497 from a week ago. The seven-day average for daily deaths is 60, up six from the prior week.

The seven-day statewide positivity rate for cases as a percent of total tests is 14.2 percent. The seven-day statewide test positivity using the number of COVID-19 positive tests over total tests is 18.4 percent.

About 77.2 percent of eligible Illinoisans ages 5 and older have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, while 68.4 percent are fully vaccinated.

Illinois vaccinators have administered 19,417,187 COVID-19 vaccines, including 3,243,169 booster doses. The seven-day average of doses administered is 45,297.