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10 McLean County Residents Hospitalized With COVID; New Cases Spike

Medication Center signs
WGLT file photo
The McLean County Health Department reports 91 new weekly coronavirus cases.

COVID-19 cases are on the rise again in McLean County after weeks of declines in the spring.

The McLean County Health Department (MCHD) reported 91 weekly coronavirus cases and 10 hospitalizations on Wednesday. Those are the first COVID hospitalizations the county has reported since early June.

The weekly caseload is the county’s highest since May and more than the last three weeks combined, according to MCHD and compiled by WGLT.

McLean County Health Department data
McLean County Health Department
The McLean County Health Department announced 91 new coronavirus cases.

Health officials have raised concerns about the highly-contagious Delta variant leading to a spike in cases this summer, though the county health department has not indicated how many of its cases are tied to the variant.

The county also announced a new COVID-related death: a man in his 60s, who was not associated with a long-term care facility. McLean County has reported 240 COVID-related deaths since the start of the pandemic.

Carle BroMenn Medical Center and OSF St. Joseph Medical Center reportedly have 26 COVID residents under their care. MCHD said 86 people are isolating at home. The county reported 46 people have completed their time in quarantine in the last week, while 18,297 and are considered recovered since the start of the pandemic in March 2020.

McLean County’s seven-day testing positivity rate rose more than a point to 2.7% That’s based on about 4,200 tests conducted in the last week. The county’s cumulative positivity rate is 4.9%, based on 381,700 tests conducted since the start of the pandemic.

Vaccines at the fair

MCHD has announced it will have COVID vaccines for walk-ins each day at the McLean County Fair from 1 to 7 p.m. on Aug. 4-8.

COVID vaccination rates in the county have steadily increased in recent weeks, but are still far short of vaccination rates the county saw during the spring.

According to the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH), 1,696 vaccines were put in arms in the last week and 167,925 have been distributed in the county since the start of vaccinations. The county’s rate of fully vaccinated stands at 48.2%. Illinois recently topped 50% in full vaccinations.

Eric Stock is the News Director at WGLT. You can contact Eric at ejstoc1@ilstu.edu.
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