COVID-19 update: Variants infecting Illinoisans in their 20s most, data shows
Young people in their 20s are the most likely age group to contract any of four highly contagious mutations of COVID-19 circulating in Illinois, data showed Wednesday.
Individuals ages 20 to 29 constituted 21.7% of 1,603 total COVID-19 variant infections, and Illinoisans in their 30s followed at 15.4%, the Illinois Department of Public Health reported.
The 40-49 age group and 50-59 age group each represented about 14.3% of variant cases.
Children and teens ages 10 through 19 were 13.7% of those infected by variants, people in their 60s represented 9.4%, children up to age 9 were 6.3%, and seniors 70 and older were 4.9%.
"Current data suggests that COVID-19 vaccines authorized for use in the U.S. offer protection against the variants circulating," Centers for Disease Control Director Rochelle Walensky said at a briefing this week.
The most predominant COVID-19 variant in Illinois originated in the United Kingdom and has caused 72% of the variant cases, followed by a Brazilian strain linked to 21%.
New cases of COVID-19 totaled 2,765 Wednesday, marking a four-day streak of daily infections falling below 3,000, according to IDPH records.
Twenty-eight more people died of the respiratory disease, including one man in his 30s, one man in his 40s, and three women and one man in their 50s.
On Tuesday, 140,712 more COVID-19 shots were administered. The seven-day average is 122,842.
The federal government has delivered 10,358,875 doses of vaccine to Illinois since distribution began in mid-December, and 8,342,542 shots have been administered.
So far, 3,498,473 people - 27.5% of Illinois' population - have been fully vaccinated. Vaccines manufactured by Pfizer and Moderna require two doses several weeks apart.
Illinois hospitals were treating 2,191 COVID-19 patients Tuesday night, higher than the seven-day average of 2,155.
The state's seven-day case positivity rate is 3.8%.
Total cases statewide stand at 1,309,552, and 21,722 Illinoisans have died since the pandemic began.
Labs processed 81,133 virus tests in the last 24 hours.
Other COVID-19 variants in Illinois originate from California, representing 6% of cases, and from South America making up over 1% of cases.