COVID-19 deaths are still occurring at an alarming rate, with an average of 150 fatalities per day so far this month.
The coronavirus has killed an additional 117 Illinoisans and spread to 7,359 more, public health officials announced Tuesday, as the state embarked on an unprecedented vaccination campaign. The new cases were diagnosed among 92,922 tests, lowering the state’s average positivity rate for an eighth straight day down to 8.6%. It marked the fifth straight day — and the ninth of the last 11 — that the Illinois Department of Public Health has reported fewer than 10,000 new cases. COVID-19 hospital admissions also continued on a promising downward trend since vaulting to record highs in late November. As of Monday night,4,965 beds were occupied by coronavirus patients, with 1,057 receiving intensive care and 598 on ventilators.
