To:

Chemical Industry Council of Illinois (CICI) Members

From:

Mark Biel, Chief Executive Officer
[email protected] or 217/522-5805 

Re:

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update – At-Home COVID Tests Available from Federal Government; Omicron Surge Could be Hitting Its Peak; Update on Vaccinations; Update on COVID-19 Cases

At-Home COVID Tests Available from Federal Government: Americans can go to a new website, covidtests.gov, to order at-home COVID tests, starting today, January 19. Tests are expected to ship within seven to 12 days of being ordered.  Initially, however, there will be a limit of four tests per residential household.

Omicron Surge Could be Hitting Its PeakSince December 1, 2021, the number of positive COVID cases in Illinois has grown by 42% to over 2.7 million.  Deaths now sit at 29,510. 

Data released from over the holiday weekend shows the state is averaging 27,795 new cases of COVID per day, a 14.4% reduction from the high watermark of 32,501 daily cases which was established on Jan. 12 of last week.  The average number of daily fatalities tied to COVID is also beginning to decrease, with 36 new deaths reported over the last 24 hours.

Hospitalization Rate: For the state as a whole, 2,537 people were hospitalized on December 1, but reached a peak of 7,380 hospitalizations on January 13. Hospitalizations have also begun to decline from their record highs, with 6,695 COVID-positive patients currently in state hospitals. That represents a reduction of more than 9% from the state’s peak of 7,380 hospitalizations on Jan. 13.  Intensive care unit admissions are also declining, but at a slower rate. The total number of ICU patients with COVID now stands at 1,120, a reduction of 4.8% from the high watermark set on Jan. 13.

State public health officials announced today that they are cautiously optimistic that, while the sheer volume of hospitalizations are breaking records, these decreasing trends over the last week could mean that the COVID-19 surge is hitting its peak.   

Update on Vaccinations:  A total of 20,110,501 vaccines have been administered to Illinois residents. The average number of vaccines administered daily is 46,866. According to the state’s vaccine administration data, here’s how the rest of the state’s population by age groups ranks in terms of vaccinations:

5 years of age and older – 69% fully vaccinated; 78% one dose administered
12 years of age and older – 74% fully vaccinated; 83% one dose administered
18 years of age and older – 75% fully vaccinated; 85% one dose administered
65 years of age and older – 87% fully vaccinated; 95% one dose administered             

The state has also updated its COVID-19 website containing current locations and other pertinent information on one webpage.

Update on COVID-19 Cases: IDPH is now reporting 2,709,474 positive tests of COVID-19 in Illinois since the pandemic began, which is an average increase of 26,645 positive tests per day since last reported here 7 days ago on January 12. In total, 48,960,282 tests have now been conducted in Illinois for the virus, an average of 221,185 per day since January 12.

The state’s average positivity rate over all 11 regions in the last 5 days is at 12%. You can see where the various regions are at in terms of their positivity rates, hospitalizations, and other metrics at this link

Unfortunately, IDPH is reporting a total of 29,510 deaths since the pandemic began, an average increase of 100 per day since January 12.

You can also check where these cases are occurring at the State of Illinois COVID-19 website which also contains more information on this outbreak.

For information on other states and countries, John Hopkins University has developed this website that provides invaluable resources at a one-stop location detailing testing and tracing trends, timelines of COVID-19 policies, vaccinations, and interactive maps.

1400 E. Touhy Ave, Suite 110
Des Plaines, IL 60018
Tel: (847) 544-5995
Fax: (847) 544-5999