New COVID-19 cases shoot up by 2,799 in a day
New cases of COVID-19 spiked to 5,044 Wednesday, the most since Sept. 10, the Illinois Department of Public Health reported.
The increase comes amid growth in COVID-19 cases across the state and is 2,799 more than Tuesday's new case tally of 2,245. The seven-day infection rate was 2,651 Tuesday and 3,122 Wednesday.
"As seen over the past 20 months, the data can fluctuate day to day, which is why we try to look at trends over time," IDPH spokeswoman Melaney Arnold said.
"IDPH is not aware of a specific reason for the large number of cases reported for today, but we will continue to look for any reporting anomalies and monitor the data for any new trends. It is too early to say if this increase marks the beginning of yet another wave."
In 42 Illinois counties, new cases went up by 100% or more between Tuesday and Wednesday. Cook County recorded 270 new infections Tuesday and 809 Wednesday, according to IDPH.
Cook County Department of Public Health spokesman Tom McFeeley said the agency had noticed recent increases in case rates and is "watching the situation closely."
"It is likely a combination of several factors (including) schools are still ramping up testing, and as more tests are done, we are better at capturing cases," McFeeley said. "Although rates are increasing for all age groups, case rates are highest in those less than 20 years of age."
Also, "there is some seasonality with COVID, and if one were to look at what happened last year over the same three weeks, one would notice we were peaking at this time. This was pre-vaccine - we are hopeful we won't see surges that large going forward."
On Nov. 10, 2020, the state reported 12,623 new COVID-19 infections, and the seven-day average was 11,595.
Colder weather means more people are indoors, which helps respiratory viruses spread, McFeeley noted.
DuPage County saw new virus cases rise from 147 Tuesday to 366 Wednesday, and in Lake County, the two-day differential was 100 to 257 infections.
"It's not a good thing, (but) I think time will tell if this is truly on the cusp of hitting another mini-spike." said Dr. Michael Bauer, medical director at Northwestern Lake Forest Hospital.
Europe is experiencing a precipitous resurgence of COVID-19, Bauer noted, and the common thread with the United States is that the majority of people who are getting sick are not vaccinated.
"It is bothersome that it continues to be younger and younger people (contracting COVID-19) because what it's showing is that the virus is seeking out those vulnerable individuals and they're largely the unvaccinated," added Bauer, a pediatrician.
The IDPH also reported 20 additional deaths from COVID-19 Wednesday.
Illinois hospitals were treating 1,467 COVID-19 patients Tuesday night. The seven-day average is nearly 1,332.
The state's seven-day average case positivity rate increased to 2.5% for the first time since Sept. 28.
Total cases statewide stand at 1,727,634, and 26,028 Illinoisans have died since the pandemic began.
On Tuesday, 76,406 more COVID-19 shots were administered. The seven-day average is 56,313.
So far, 36,142 Illinois children ages 5 to 11 have received COVID-19 vaccinations since federal authorization was given Nov. 2.
In all, 7,259,916 people have been fully vaccinated or nearly 57% of Illinois' 12.7 million population. Vaccines manufactured by Pfizer and Moderna require two doses several weeks apart.
The federal government has delivered 19,171,235 doses of vaccine to Illinois since distribution began in mid-December, and 16,123,048 shots have been administered.
Labs processed 148,834 virus tests in the last 24 hours.