IDPH announces $3.7 million in grants for COVID-19 health equity strategies

The Illinois Department of Public Health said Monday it will provide $3.7 million in grants to community organizations to address and implement COVID-19 health equity strategies.

The federally funded program will support community collaborations that work to support historically marginalized communities disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. That could include efforts to address the social determinants of health and the root causes of health disparities like racism.

Up to $235,000 in grants will be available to 15 community collaborations outside of Cook County, with grants of $10,000 available for up to 25 additional communities.

“The heart of this project is to uplift local voices and develop local solutions in a way that will provide sustainable improvements to health and well-being for our Illinois communities,” IDPH Acting Director Amaal Tokars said in a statement.

As of Sunday, 699 Illinoisans were in the hospital with COVID-19, up 54 from Saturday and up 11 from the prior week.

Of the patients in the hospital, 72 were in intensive care units, down eight from Saturday and up five from the prior week. Twenty-four percent of Illinois’ ICU beds were available, the same as the prior week.

There were 21 patients on ventilators, down one from Saturday and down two from the prior week.

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

IDPH reported 2,422 new COVID-19 cases and zero deaths on Monday. The new cases bring the state total to 3,147,663, while the death toll remains at 33,620.

The seven-day average for new cases on Monday was 3,639, up 503 from the prior week. The seven-day average for daily deaths is six, down three from the prior week.

The seven-day case rate per 100,000 people is 28.6, up four 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 21,900,213 COVID-19 vaccines, including 4,390,428 booster doses. The seven-day average for doses administered is 14,062.