Illinois COVID-19 Update: IL reports 4,469 cases, 81 coronavirus deaths
More than 95% of Chicago's vaccines distributed, mayor says
CHICAGO (WLS) -- Illinois public health officials reported 4,469 COVID-19 cases and 81 related deaths Sunday.
On Saturday, the Illinois Department of Public Health reported a single-day COVID-19 death toll of 29 -- the lowest one-day total in nearly two full months. It is about a quarter of the 111 deaths the state has been averaging over the past two weeks. The health department also said that the number of confirmed cases rose by 4,762. Both the totals were lower than the daily averages over the past two weeks.
The total number of cases in Illinois now stands at 979,821, with a total of 16,755 deaths, since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Within the past 24 hours, laboratories have reported 45,465 specimens for a total 13,482,117.
As of Saturday night, 3,817 patients in Illinois were reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19. Of those, 798 patients were in the ICU and 462 patients with COVID-19 were on ventilators.
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The preliminary seven-day statewide test positivity from Dec. 27 - Jan. 2 is 9.6%.
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The test positivity rate is a metric the state began providing in late October. It is calculated by using the total number of positive tests over the total number of tests. This is the metric being used to by state health officials to make decisions about mitigations.
Illinois residents head to Indiana's eateries to dine inside
Some Illinois residents fed up with their state's second ban on indoor dining amid the pandemic are heading to restaurants in adjacent Indiana so they can dine out with others.
When Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced Illinois' second indoor dining ban in October due to surging COVID-19 numbers, many restauranteurs hoped the restrictions would be short-lived.
Three months later, restaurants in Illinois towns like Calumet City and Lansing that border northwest Indiana say they are seeing customers lured away by Indiana eateries not subject to the same restrictions, The (Northwest Indiana) Times reported.
More than 95% of Chicago's vaccines distributed, mayor says
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said in a tweet Saturday that the city has distributed more than 95% of vaccines it received.
She also added that at the current rate of dose allocation from the federal government, it would take nearly one and a half years to fully vaccinate the city.
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The deaths reported Sunday include:
- Christian County: 1 female 70s
- Cook County: 1 male 30s, 1 female 40s, 1 male 40s, 1 female 50s, 5 males 50s, 2 females 60s, 7 males 60s, 11 females 70s, 7 males 70s, 10 females 80s, 5 males 80s, 6 females 90s, 3 males 90s, 2 females 100+
- DuPage County: 2 males 60s, 1 male 70s, 2 females 80s, 1 female 90s
- Jefferson County: 1 male 90s
- Kane County: 1 male 60s
- Kankakee County: 1 male 50s, 1 male 60s
- Macoupin County: 1 female 80s
- Madison County: 1 male 60s, 1 male 80s
- Sangamon County: 2 females 80s
- Will County: 2 males 60s, 1 female 80s
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
