Governor JB Pritzker says the state is now seeing its highest surge in COVID-19 cases during the entire pandemic.
Between the Delta and Omicron variants, new cases have been increasing in recent weeks and the state is averaging 500 new hospital admissions daily for COVID-19, which is double from a month ago. As of Sunday night, more than 47-hundred COVID-19 patients were in the hospital.
State Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike says the key to getting through this surge is to get your shots.
“Admittedly nothing is 100%. No vaccine is 100%. But if you can significantly, drastically, reduce your chance of being hospitalized or dying, why wouldn’t you avail yourself to that opportunity?”
At least four regions in the state have less than 10 ICU beds available. Ezike says masking up and getting tested is also vital as the pandemic continues into the New Year.
The Governor on Monday announced that Illinois is adding at least 100 people to help at local health department mass vaccination sites to meet growing demand in larger cities across the state.
