 IDPH
has recorded a total of 4,135,808 cases and 36,850 deaths, in 102
counties in Illinois since the beginning of the pandemic. The
department is reporting 3,850 new confirmed and probable cases of
COVID-19 in Illinois in the week ending April 30, and 5 deaths.
IDPH Director Dr. Sameer Vohra welcomed the news today that the
World Health Organization has declared an end to the global health
emergency for COVID-19 that was in place since January 30, 2020.
Director Vohra said that with the national and state Public Health
Emergencies for COVID -19 expiring on May 11, there will be changes
to data collection and reporting on the virus:
**After May 11, the CDC has announced it will stop tracking and
reporting COVID-19 cases at the community level, meaning that it
will no longer be providing a weekly updates that show whether
COVID-19 cases are at Low, Medium or High Level.
**Hospitals will no longer be required to report the number of
COVID-19 patients in hospital beds or in the ICU or on ventilators.
**IDPH will continue to report the weekly number of COVID-19
hospital admissions, cases and deaths and weekly vaccination data.
**Data on COVID-19 and the flu will also continue to be reported via
the Illinois Waste Water Surveillance System dashboard
“We want the public to know that due to changes in
federal reporting requirements some of the COVID-19 data that we
have been collecting will change after May 11,” said IDPH Director
Dr. Sameer Vohra. “However, IDPH will still have reliable methods
for tracking COVID-19 in Illinois. IDPH will continue its focus on
protecting the public from COVID-19, especially those individuals
who are vulnerable to serious illness. With the World Health
Organization’s news today of the end of the global health emergency,
as well as the national public health emergency and statewide
disaster declarations ending in less than a week, it is very good
news that cases remain low. All counties in Illinois are now at Low
Community Level for COVID-19 and this marks the seventh straight
week with zero counties at a high COVID-19 community level.”
Both IDPH and the Illinois Department on Aging have endorsed
recommendations earlier this month by the FDA and CDC for an
optional additional updated bivalent vaccine dose for adults 65 and
older and optional additional doses for people who are
immunocompromised. The bivalent booster is designed to offer better
protection against newer strains of the virus.
On April 19, the CDC recommended a second bivalent booster for those
who are 65 and older if it has been at least four months since their
first bivalent booster. For those who are immunocompromised, they
are eligible for a second bivalent booster if it has been at least
two months since their first bivalent booster.
IDPH continues to urge the public to seek treatment 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.
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The CDC previously 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.
Initially, the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine, Bivalent, was recommended
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. On March 14,
the FDA expanded its authorization for bivalent boosters to include
children aged 6 months to 4 years who had previously completed their
entire Pfizer primary series with the monovalent vaccine. For young
children, multiple doses of bivalent vaccine continue to be
recommended and will vary by age, vaccine, and which vaccines were
previously received.
Under the new recommendations, children 6 months through 5 years of
age who are unvaccinated may receive a two-dose series of the
Moderna bivalent vaccine (6 months through 5 years of age) OR a
three-dose series of the Pfizer-BioNTech bivalent vaccine (6 months
through 4 years of age). Children who are 5 years of age may receive
two doses of the Moderna bivalent vaccine or a single dose of the
Pfizer-BioNTech bivalent vaccine.
Children 6 months through 5 years of age who have received one, two
or three doses of a monovalent COVID-19 vaccine may receive a
bivalent vaccine, but the number of doses that they receive will
depend on the vaccine and their vaccination history.
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, 404 individuals in Illinois were
reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19. Of those, 46 patients
were in the ICU and 25 patients with COVID-19 were on ventilators.
The preliminary seven-day statewide case rate is 31 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 26,181,059 vaccines have been administered in Illinois as
of today. The seven-day rolling average of vaccines administered
daily is 3,597 doses, including the bivalent booster and first
doses. Since April 28, 25,179 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 20% 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/.
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