Illinois public health officials urge caution over the weekend of July 4

Even though the number of new COVID-19 cases remained low, Illinois public health officials urged people to be careful over the holiday weekend – especially in light of the prevalence of the Delta variant , more contagious.

“Celebrate the July 4th weekend while exercising appropriate caution,” Dr. Ngozi Ezike, director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, said in a statement. “Although many events take place outdoors, it is still important that unvaccinated people take precautions and, if necessary, avoid large crowds where social distancing is not possible.

“For indoor events, unvaccinated people should continue to wear masks, and vaccinated people may choose to do so, as the more virulent strain of COVID-19, Delta variant, is increasing in Illinois.”

The state reported 2,120 new confirmed and probable coronavirus cases on Friday and 54 additional deaths since June 25. About 72% of adults in Illinois have received at least one shot of the vaccine, with 56% of adults now fully vaccinated, according to state statistics.

The state reported 2,120 new confirmed and probable coronavirus cases on Friday and 54 additional deaths since June 25. About 72% of adults in Illinois have received at least one shot of the vaccine, with 56% of adults now fully vaccinated, according to state statistics.

The weekly workload is the highest since the state switched to reporting seven-day totals last month instead of regular daily updates and briefings.

It has averaged just under 303 cases per day over the past week, still less than half of the daily counts recorded a month ago.

But the 2,120 cases over the past week are more than double the first weekly total of 928 reported on June 18.

The 54 deaths reported in the past week are on average just under eight per day, down from the double-digit daily number regularly reported through the middle of last month.

As of Thursday evening, 424 people were hospitalized with COVID-19; of these, 97 patients were in intensive care and 35 patients were on ventilators.

The state’s seven-day positivity rate is 0.9%.

A total of 12,648,167 vaccine injections have been administered to date. Since June 25, 288,050 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in Illinois, according to the state.

The state is also reporting a total of 1,392,552 cases of the illness, resulting in a total of 23,245 deaths.