COVID-19 shots set another record, but all other state metrics look worse

The number of doses of COVID-19 vaccine administered Friday climbed again to a new record in Illinois, but all the other metrics were worse than the day before, when case positivity was the lowest since coronavirus testing began.

The Illinois Department of Public Health reported that 134,239 doses of vaccine were administered, up 2,357 from Thursday, and 48% more than the 7-day rolling average of 90,428 doses.

On a less positive note, the state reported 2,565 new confirmed and probable cases of coronavirus disease, up 48 percent from the previous day, and an additional 50 deaths, up 51%. Day-to-day numbers can fluctuate significantly, however.

The deaths included 18 people in Cook County, one in DuPage County, two in Lake County and six in Will County.

As of Friday night, 1,210 individuals in Illinois were reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19. Of those, 261 patients were in the ICU and 108 patients were on ventilators. Those numbers were all up from Thursday.

The preliminary seven-day statewide positivity for cases as a percent of total tests from Feb. 27-March 5 is 2.4%, up from the record low of 2.2% on Thursday.