Weekly coronavirus cases in McLean County have dropped to their lowest level in nearly two months.
On Wednesday, the McLean County Health Department (MCHD) reported 303 new coronavirus cases since Sept. 29. That’s the third straight week the number of new cases has dropped, and it’s down 30% from the 435 weekly cases reported on Sept. 15, according to data compiled by WGLT. The weekly total is the county's lowest since Aug. 11.
The latest weekly data from Sept. 29 to Oct. 4 show people in their 20s make up the largest share of new cases at 49, while people 11 and under have had 47 new cases. Adults in their 30s and 40s are next at 43 and 40 cases, respectively. About 56% of weekly cases involve people under age 40.
Additional COVID death
MCHD reported one additional COVID-related death on Wednesday — a man in his 80s. He was not associated with long-term care. That’s the sixth COVID-related death reported in October and the 263rd since the start of the pandemic.
MCHD reports 28 COVID hospitalizations; that’s down one since Tuesday. Carle BroMenn and OSF St. Joseph medical centers have 96% of their intensive care beds in use and 94% of all beds are full. They are currently treating 25 COVID patients. Children's Hospital of Illinois in Peoria reports it has three COVID patients.
OSF HealthCare indicated on Wednesday 70% of its current COVID-19 patients systemwide have not been vaccinated, including 89% of its COVID patients in ICU and nine of its 10 patients who are on ventilators.
The county announced 56 new daily coronavirus cases from a batch of about 2,800 tests returned overnight. The seven-day testing positivity rate in McLean County dipped to 2.4% and the county’s cumulative positivity rate remains 4.4% based on more than 511,300 tests conducted since the start of the pandemic.
There are 302 people in McLean County isolating at home, while 66 residents completed their time in quarantine overnight and 21,804 people are considered recovered from COVID-19.
COVID vaccines
Data from the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) show more than 188,100 COVID vaccines have been administered in McLean County. The county’s rate of fully vaccinated is 54.4%, compared to the state rate of 55.7%.
MCHD said people 65 and older have the highest vaccination rate in the county at 90%. Adults ages 18 to 64 are vaccinated at a 58.7% rate and 12-to-17-year-olds have a 56.7% vaccination rate.
