Will-Kankakee COVID-19 Positivity, Hospitalization Increase

WILL COUNTY, IL — The Will-Kankakee region is once again nearing warning levels as it continues seeing a rise in coronavirus positivity as well as in hospital admissions due to COVID-19, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. As of Thursday, Region 7 has seven consecutive days of positivity increase and six days of hospital admission increase.

Coronavirus positivity for the region is currently 6.6 percent, which has increased from 5.4 percent over the last 10 days. It has also increased by 0.3 percent since Wednesday. Hospital admissions have increased from 6 to 14 during the same time period.

Any region that sustains an 8 percent positivity rate for three days in a row or sees an increase in positivity rates and simultaneous decrease in hospital capacity will need to implement additional community mitigation interventions, the IDPH website states.

Just Will County has a 7-day rolling average positivity rate of 6.9 percent as of Monday, a significant increase from Sunday's 6.4 percent. This number has also increased from 5.5 percent 10 days prior.

Currently, Region 7 has 29 percent medical beds and 29 percent ICU beds available. These numbers have also decreased since Wednesday. This will reach warning level if they fall below 20 percent.

The region is using 76 percent of its ICUs and 41 percent of all the available ventilators. As per IDPH data, the Will-Kankakee region has the lowest number of ICU beds and ventilators available among the other regions in the state.

Hospitalizations across the state have jumped 6.8 percent from Tuesday and nearly 12 percent from Monday. As of Tuesday night, 1,974 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 across the state, including 390 in intensive care and 153 on ventilators, according to IDPH.

The statewide test positivity rate — a rolling, seven-day average — ticked up another tenth of a percentage point to 4.6 percent.

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