Lake Co. Health Officials Urge Caution As COVID-19 Cases Rise

LAKE COUNTY, IL — The Lake County Health Department is urging the public to take precautions to slow the resurgence of COVID-19. The majority of cases nationwide have been in unvaccinated individuals.

“The entire state of Illinois is seeing a steady increase in cases and we need to be careful,” said Mark Pfister, executive director at the Lake County Health Department, in a statement Monday. “Prevention strategies that include vaccines, masks, and social distancing are our best defense against the COVID-19 virus and its variants."

Cases have been steadily increasing in Lake County over the past month, with Lake County’s positivity rate more than doubling in the last week.

“As the Delta variant becomes more prevalent nationally, we are seeing that it spreads more easily than other variants,” said Dr. Sana Ahmed, medical epidemiologist at the health department. “New COVID-19 cases are being seen primarily among unvaccinated individuals and our younger population.”

More than 739,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered to Lake County residents, and over 51 percent are fully vaccinated. Additionally, 85 percent of Lake County residents age 65 and above have received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose, and 80 percent are fully vaccinated.

At this time children under the age of 12 are not eligible for COVID-19 vaccinations. As with other unvaccinated individuals, they remain especially vulnerable to COVID-19.

The Lake County Health Department strongly recommends school districts begin the school year with layered COVID-19 prevention strategies that are outlined in the updated CDC guidance for K-12 schools and adopted by the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH).

“Children, even if without symptoms and with lower risk for severe illness, are still able to become ill with COVID-19 and spread it to others,” Pfister said. “With younger children unable to be vaccinated at this time, layered prevention strategies are the best way to keep our young students safe throughout the school year and keep students in the classroom.”

The positivity rate has consistently been on the rise in Region 9, which includes McHenry and Lake counties in recent days. The 7-day rolling average positivity rate in Lake County is 2.6 percent as of Saturday, which is an increase of 1.2 percentage points in 10 days, according to recent public health data.

McHenry County's 7-day rolling average positivity rate hit 4.8 percent as of Saturday.