IDPH strongly positioned to address any potential COVID-19 surge, says acting director

As Illinois’ COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations continue to rise, the interim head of the Department of Public Health said Friday they remain well-positioned to address any potential surge.

IDPH acting Director Amaal Tokars said they have worked with pharmacies and healthcare providers to increase inventories of the various COVID-19 treatments, with over 2,200 treatment locations in Illinois.

“The most important point we want to stress about COVID-19 treatments is that timing is essential, and the public should know that it is critically important to consult a healthcare provider and seek treatment immediately if you test positive,” Tokars said.

The agency reported 24,646 confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 last week, a 26 percent jump from the prior week. Forty-six more Illinoisans died.

The new cases bring the state total to 3,138,682 cases, while the death toll increased to 33,614.

The seven-day average for new cases on Friday was 3,521, up 728 from the prior week. The seven-day average for daily deaths is seven, down one from the prior week.

The seven-day rolling average case rate per 100,000 people is 27.6 up 5.7 from the prior week.

Five Illinois counties, Champaign, DuPage, Logan, Lake and McLean, are rated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as having a “medium” risk of community spread.

As of Thursday, 732 Illinoisans were in the hospital with COVID-19, up 18 from Wednesday and up 119 from the prior week.

Of the patients in the hospital, 75 were in intensive care units, up one from Wednesday and down seven from the prior week. Twenty-four percent of Illinois’ ICU beds were available.

There were 32 patients on ventilators, up nine from Wednesday and up six from the prior week.

About 81.4 percent of eligible Illinoisans ages 5 and older have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, while 73 percent are fully vaccinated.

Illinois vaccinators have administered 21,871,464 COVID-19 vaccines, including 4,385,310 booster doses. The seven-day average for doses administered is 15,913.

About 60.2 percent of total doses administered went to white Illinoisans, while 15.5 went to Latinx residents, 11.2 percent to Black residents and 7.2 to Asian residents. About 3.1 percent went to those identified as “other races” while 2.3 percent are “unknown.”