More Than Half Of Homewood Is Vaccinated: CCDPH

HOMEWOOD, IL — COVID-19 cases in Homewood continue to rise, along with the rest of Cook County. The Cook County Department of Public Health (CCDPH) reports that more than half of Homewood has received at least one dose of any COVID-19 vaccine.

According to the CCDPH, about 65.5 percent (12,662) of Homewood residents have gotten at least one shot, and 54.4 percent (10,510) is fully vaccinated as of Saturday. Last week, 10 new cases were reported in the village, and 1,830 cases have been reported since the start of the pandemic.

Cook County in general has a 4.2 percent positivity rate. Since the start of the pandemic, 257,433 Cook County residents have tested positive for the virus, and 4,508 have died.

The Delta Variant has increased its presence in the county, according to CCDPH. There have been a total of 138 COVID-19 cases that have detected the Delta Variant, the health department reports. In the last two weeks, 81 delta cases have been detected, spreading 55 percent more, the department reports.

Cook County has a "substantial" level of coronavirus transmission as of Aug. 3, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There were 69 new cases per 100,000 residents between July 27 and Aug. 2.

The positive test rate was 3.4 percent between July 25 and July 31, which was a 0.8 percentage point increase from the previous seven days.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that fully vaccinated people wear masks indoors in public if they live in an area with "substantial" or "high" transmission levels. Those who aren't fully vaccinated are urged to wear masks in those settings, regardless of transmission level.