New Illinois COVID-19 Cases Jump By 30 Percent Past Week: IDPH

SPRINGFIELD, IL — State health officials are reporting an uptick in new COVID-19 cases over the past week after the agency announced it is changing the way it reports pandemic-related data.

The Illinois Department of Public Health announced on Friday that 14,049 people across the state had tested positive for COVID-19 — a 30 percent increase from the week before — and 45 people had died over the past week. The state also reported that 454 people had been hospitalized with COVID-19 over the past week and that 70 people were in intensive care and 32 were on ventilators.

Using the new metrics to report cases statewide, the IDPH said that 110 COVID-19 cases had been reported per 100,000 residents.

New positive cases among state residents grew over the week by more than 3,000 after 10,786 people tested positive for COVID-19 during the week of April 8, health officials said. Overall, the number of COVID-19 deaths dropped from 71 over the previous week, while cases grew around the state.

The majority of Illinois remains in the low transmission category despite the rise in cases. Three downstate counties remain in the moderate transmission case category, state officials said.

The state reported that 138,595 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine were distributed in the week since April 8, and 21,648,058 doses of the vaccine were administered across Illinois. Health officials said that 68 percent of all Illinoisans are fully vaccinated and 76 percent of all residents have received at least one dose of the vaccine. More than 50 percent of residents have received the COVID-19 booster, as health officials continue to stress that the severity of COVID-19 is much lower for residents who are vaccinated.

Since the start of the pandemic, 3,094,485 people have tested positive for COVID-19 and 33,510 people have died across Illinois’ 102 counties.