Illinois COVID-19 hospitalizations increase to levels last seen in February

State health officials Friday reported 1,471 COVID-19 patients were being treated in hospitals throughout the state.

That's a 4.1% increase from a week ago, when 1,413 patients were hospitalized with the deadly respiratory virus.

At one point this past week, more than 1,500 patients were hospitalized with COVID-19, which hasn't happened since mid-February, according to Illinois Department of Public Health records.

Of those currently hospitalized, 181 are in ICU beds. That's up 41 patients from a week ago, IDPH figures show.

IDPH officials also recorded 123 more deaths over the past week, including 51 on Tuesday alone, the highest single-day total since late February.

The state is now averaging 18 deaths a day from the virus over the past week, the highest that metric has been since mid-March.

The state's death toll from COVID-19 now sits at 34,539, IDPH is reporting.

Another 26,462 new cases of the virus were also reported in Illinois over the past week. Since the outset of the pandemic, 3,620,877 infections have been recorded statewide.

After weeks of being listed as counties with a high risk of community spread, both Cook and McHenry counties were downgraded to medium risk this week. The remaining collar counties remain as high community levels, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Public health officials urge those with underlying medical conditions to wear masks in crowded or indoor settings in the counties with high community levels.

The CDC is also reporting 69.5% of the state's 12.8 million residents are fully vaccinated. Of those fully vaccinated, 54.5% have received a booster dose. Of those eligible for a second booster, 35.6% have received one.

“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,” IDPH officials stated in their weekly news release.