After two-day spike, COVID-19 deaths in Illinois decline

After a two-day spike that saw the highest death toll from COVID-19 in more than two months, fatalities caused by the coronavirus were cut nearly in half Sunday, state health authorities reported.

According to the Illinois Department of Public Health, 24 state residents succumbed to the virus Saturday, down from 47 on Friday and 48 on Thursday. Those were the highest death totals since early March.

Among the deaths reported Sunday were eight residents of Cook County, two each from DuPage and Will counties, and one each from Kane and Lake counties.

In all, 22,439 have died in Illinois since the outbreak began last year.

The number of new confirmed and probable cases also declined, with 1,248 reported Sunday, the fewest since March 20.

Hospitalizations remained steady, with 1,581 COVID-19 patients in Illinois reported the hospital Saturday night, the same number as 24 hours earlier. Of those, 404 were in intensive care — down five from Friday night — and 218 were on ventilators.

Officials said another 53,335 doses of COVID-19 vaccine were given Saturday, below the seven-day rolling average of 66,728. In all, 10,375,588 vaccines have been administered in Illinois, and 37.6% of the state's population is considered fully vaccinated.

DuPage County continues to lead the way in the suburbs, with 44% of the county's population vaccinated. Suburban Cook County is next, with 39.9% vaccinated, followed by Kane at 35.9%, Will at 35.6%, McHenry at 35% and Lake at 34.6%.

The preliminary seven-day statewide positivity for cases as a percent of total test from May 9 to May 15 is 2.4%, down slightly from the 2.5% reported Saturday.