Added Rules 'Strong Possibility' For Region 9: Health Officials

MCHENRY AND LAKE COUNTIES, IL — State officials could order additional rules for Region 9, which includes Lake and McHenry counties, if the number of new coronavirus cases doesn't start to drop off. Currently, the positivity rate is rising rapidly, jumping three percentage points in the past 10 days from 8.1 percent to 11.1 percent as of Nov. 1.

"From our perspective, Tier 2 is looking like a very strong possibility because our rates of infection and hospitalization continue to increase," said Hannah Goering, marketing and communications manager for the Lake County Health Department and Community Health Center.

New mitigations, including an end to indoor dining, began on Oct. 31. To date, there's been 10 days where the 7-day rolling average for the region's positivity rate has been above 8 percent. Under the state's resurgence plan, Tier 1 mitigations, which included the end to indoor dining and drinking at bars and restaurants, are ordered after the test positivity rate exceeds 8 percent for three days.

From there, Tier 2 mitigations "may be applied" if a region's positivity rate remains above 8 percent after 14 days. Saturday will mark one week for Region 9 under Tier 2 mitigations, which means we could hit the 14-day mark on Nov. 14, Goering said. Tier 2 mitigations would include further limitations on in-person dining and social gatherings, a ban on indoor recreational activities, new restrictions at hospitals, and a return to curbside pickup from retail stores.

• COVID-19 Violations On Rise At Bars, Restaurants

The Lake County Health Department has been fielding complaints from residents frustrated over restaurants that have remained open despite Gov. J.B. Pritzker's order to end indoor dining, Goering said.

"The reason restaurants, bars, and social gatherings are the target of mitigation is that they present situations where people are closer than six feet from one another for a prolonged period of time with no masks, she said.

Region 9 first tipped over 8 percent on Oct. 23 , and cases have consistently been on the rise since. On the first two days since mitigations have been in place, Oct. 31 and Nov. 1, the 7-day rolling average for test positivity hit 10.5 and then 11.1 percent. The most recent rate is two percentage points higher than 10 days ago.

Residents need to take precautions now to slow the spread.

"There is no formula for when we expect cases to slow," Goering said. "Keep in mind that when we slow the spread of the virus, we are preventing cases and hospitalizations weeks from now. Our success here depends on our residents doing the right thing and avoiding situations where this virus spreads."

The Stats

State health officials on Wednesday reported 7,538 new cases of the coronavirus and 55 more deaths from COVID-19, the respiratory illness caused by the virus. The statewide totals now stand at 437,556 confirmed infections and 9,933 known deaths. Another 6,259 probable cases and 283 probable deaths are not included in the official totals.

Daily deaths are rising, the Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Wednesday. According to the governor, the state averaged 23 deaths per day last month. Currently, the average is 45 deaths per day.

In McHenry County, there have been 7,756 confirmed COVID-19 cases since the beginning of the pandemic and 120 deaths. The confirmed infections make up 1.8 percent of the state's total to date and deaths here amount to 1.2 percent.

In Lake County, there have been 23,652 confirmed cases as of Wednesday and 525 deaths, including one man in his 60s who died in the past 24 hours. The cases in Lake make up of 5.4 percent of the state's total and deaths here amount to 5.3 percent.

Hospitalizations

Hospitalizations continued to rise across the state Wednesday, jumping another 4.6 percent from the previous day. ICU occupancy rose 2.8 percent, and the number of patients on ventilators increased by one patient. As of Tuesday night, 3,761 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 across Illinois, including 776 in intensive care and 327 on ventilators.

Meanwhile, average hospitalizations have more than doubled over the past month, from an average of 1,500 in October to 3,300 now.

In Region 9, hospital admission has doubled in the past 10 days, according to the most recent IDPH data. The rounded, rolling seven-day average of admissions to hospitals with "COVID-like illnesses," or CLI, shows 25 people are being newly hospitalized per day in Lake and McHenry counties.

Hospital beds are also starting to fill up. Compared to 10 days ago, when 50 percent of hospital beds were available, now 34 percent are open, according to recent health data. Meanwhile, beds in intensive care units in Region 9 have been more readily available, suggesting those hospitalized are not becoming seriously ill. Currently, ICU bed capacity is at 46 percent.

Concerns over hospital capacity heighten for state health officials when the availability of medical and surgical beds, as well as beds in the region's ICUs, dips under 20 percent.

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