 IDPH
has recorded a total of 4,083,292 cases and 36,431 deaths, in 102
counties in Illinois since the beginning of the pandemic. The
department is reporting 10,320 new confirmed and probable cases of
COVID-19 in Illinois in the week ending March 5, and 45 deaths.
IDPH Director Dr. Sameer Vohra warned that cases of group A strep
throat leading to severe complications are on the rise in Illinois,
with more cases reported in 2023 than in any of the past five years.
“As COVID-19 cases and community levels remain stable, I want to
share my concern about the growing number of strep throat cases in
Illinois that are leading to severe complications,” Director Vohra
said. “These cases, known as invasive Group A strep, are the result
of disease spreading from the throat to blood, muscle and lungs. I
urge parents to contact their health providers when their children
start showing early symptoms. These symptoms include sudden onset of
sore throat, pain when swallowing and fever. Early detection is
critical as strep can be diagnosed with a simple test and treated
with antibiotics. If able, please make sure everyone in the house is
up to date with flu and chickenpox vaccines. Having either the flu
or chickenpox can increase your risk of contracting invasive Group A
strep.”
Parents and others can get more information about Group A strep at
this CDC resource page.
IDPH is also urging the public to seek treatment for COVID-19
quickly if they test positive for COVID-19. Treatment is widely
available and IDPH announced recently that SIU Medicine has made it
easier to obtain care by offering a new telehealth test to treat
service for COVID-19, in partnership with the department. The
service is aimed at providing faster and easier access to treatment
for Illinoisans who contract COVID-19. Those who test positive are
encouraged to call 217-545-5100 from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through
Friday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays to schedule a
telehealth appointment to determine if medical treatment is
recommended. Appointments will be offered on a first-come,
first-serve basis.
Additional options for obtaining tests and
treatments can be found at the following test to treat site or by
contacting your provider for treatment options, within 5 days of
feeling ill.
IDPH is helping Illinoisans stay prepared for any future surge of
COVID-19 cases by offering 1 million free COVID-19 rapid antigen
tests to Illinois residents in all zip codes outside the City of
Chicago through a partnership with the Rockefeller Foundation’s
public charity, RF Catalytic Capital and its Project ACT (Access
COVID Tests) program.
Through Project ACT, IDPH is distributing up to one million at-home
antigen tests to 200,000 Illinois households. You can request one
package of five tests on a first-come-first-serve basis at the
Project ACT website. The tests will be delivered to the home
address.
Free or low cost COVID-19 testing locations are
also available throughout the state, including in Chicago, and can
be found on the IDPH website’s testing locator page.
The CDC authorized two new bivalent booster vaccines on September 1
that include an mRNA component of the original strain to provide an
immune response that is broadly protective against COVID-19 and an
added mRNA component in common between the omicron variant BA.4 and
BA.5 lineages to provide better protection against COVID-19 caused
by the omicron variant.
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Initially, the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine, Bivalent,
was authorized for use as a single booster dose in individuals 18
years of age and older and the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine,
Bivalent, was authorized for use as a single booster dose in
individuals 12 years of age and older. On October 12, the CDC
authorized the updated COVID-19 vaccines from Pfizer-BioNTech for
children ages 5 through 11 years, and from Moderna for children and
adolescents ages 6 through 17 years.
On December 9, the CDC expanded its authorization for bivalent
boosters to include children aged 6 months to 5 years. Children ages
6 months through 5 years who previously completed a Moderna primary
series can now receive a Moderna bivalent booster 2 months after
their final primary series dose. Children ages 6 months through 4
years who are completing a Pfizer primary series will receive a
Pfizer bivalent vaccine as their third primary dose.
The updated boosters are available at pharmacies, hospitals, and
other healthcare providers. The best way to locate a vaccine
provider near you is to visit www.vaccines.gov and search for
bivalent booster availability.
As of last night, 880 individuals in Illinois were reported to be in
the hospital with COVID-19. Of those, 102 patients were in the ICU
and 33 patients with COVID-19 were on ventilators. The preliminary
seven-day statewide case rate is 81 COVID-19 cases per 100,000
Illinoisans.
In counties at the Medium Community Level, persons who are elderly
or immunocompromised (at risk of severe outcomes) are advised to
wear a mask in indoor public places. They should also get up to date
on COVID-19 vaccines or get their bivalent booster, if eligible.
IDPH has been supporting pharmacies and healthcare providers in
efforts to increase their inventories of the various FDA-authorized
treatments. There are over 1,200 treatment locations in Illinois -
including all the major retail pharmacies. More than 96.7% of the
state’s population is within a 10-mile radius of one of these
locations.
A total of 26,057,999 vaccines have been administered in Illinois as
of today. The seven-day rolling average of vaccines administered
daily is 3,566 doses, including the bivalent booster and first
doses. Since March 3, 24,961 vaccine doses were reported
administered in Illinois. Of Illinois’ total population, more than
79% have received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose, more than 71%
have completed their primary series of COVID-19 vaccines, and more
than 19% have received the bivalent booster dose, according to data
from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Data indicates that the risk of hospitalization and
severe outcomes from COVID-19 is much higher for unvaccinated people
than for those who are up to date on their vaccinations. All data
are provisional and are subject to change. Additional information
and COVID-19 data can be found at https://dph.illinois.gov/covid19.html.
Vaccination is the key to ending this pandemic. To find a COVID-19
vaccination location near you, go to www.vaccines.gov. The federal
government has established a new website that provides an
all-purpose toolkit with information on how to obtain masks,
treatment, vaccines and testing resources for all areas of the
country at: https://www.covid.gov/.
[Illinois Office of Communication and
Information] |
