Thirty-seven counties in Illinois and Chicago are now at a “warning level” for the availability of intensive care beds, according to COVID-19 data from the state health department.
The Illinois Department of Public Health reports that the following areas have limited availability of beds in the ICU: Alexander, Bond, Boone, Carroll, Chicago, Clinton, Cook, DeKalb, Edwards, Franklin, Gallatin, Hamilton, Hardin, Jackson , Jefferson, Jo Daviess, Johnson, Lee, Madison, Marion, Massac, Monroe, Ogle, Perry, Pope, Pulaski, Randolph, Saline, St. Clair, Stephenson, Union, Wabash, Washington, Wayne, White, Whiteside, Williamson, Winnebago.
For a county to reach the “warning level,” it must have a bed capacity of less than 20%, IDPH noted.
As of Tuesday, Chicago had an availability of 17.1%, Cook County was 18.9% and DeKalb County reported 17.4%, according to IDPH data.
All but one of the counties in Illinois also see a “high” community transmission of COVID-19, placing most of the state in the category in which all ages 2 and older should continue to wear a mask. ‘interior, regardless of the state of vaccination, say health officials.
U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its guidelines late last month to recommend that fully vaccinated people re-use masks indoors in areas of the United States that see a “substantial” transmission or ” high “of COVID-19.
The new guide marked the reversal of previous recommendations that said fully vaccinated people could remove masks in most settings.
So in what areas does the CDC advise people to wear masks indoors? The agency points to its COVID-19 data tracker that shows community transmission levels, along with other data, for each U.S. county
As of Sunday, 101 Illinois counties were experiencing “high” levels of community transmission, according to IDPH data. Carroll County was marked as a “substantial” transmission.
All counties with “high” transmissions continue the recommendation to mask inland, regardless of vaccination status.
The agency uses two measures to group U.S. counties into the four levels of community transmission: the number of new cases per 100,000 residents and the percentage of COVID-19 tests that are positive over the past week.
If a county has reported 50 to 100 cases per 100,000 residents over a seven-day period or has a positivity rate of 8% to 10%, it falls to the level of “substantial transmission,” while those reporting 100 cases or more per 100,000 or have a positivity rate of at least 10%, are labeled as “high transmission”. These are the two groups for which the CDC recommends wearing masks.
The CDC also said last week that fully vaccinated people could also “choose to mask themselves regardless of the level of transmission, especially if they or someone in their household is immunocompromised or at increased risk for serious illness or if someone of your home is not vaccinated. “
The Illinois Department of Public Health said last month that it was “fully adopting” the updated CDC guidelines and following directions from federal health officials in recommending masking K-12 schools universally between teachers, staff, students and school visitors, regardless of vaccination status.
On August 4, Governor JB Pritzker announced a new mask mandate, which required, instead of recommending, that all students, faculty, and staff at K-12 schools wear masks inside while officials they were taking steps to try to curb the spread of transmissible delta variant.
Chicago health officials have ordered a new indoor mask warrant for all people 2 years of age or older, regardless of vaccination status, which requires facial coverage in all indoor public settings, including bars, restaurants, private gyms and clubs.
According to CDPH, masks can be removed in restaurants, bars and other establishments while guests eat or drink, as well as for certain activities, such as shaving and facial treatments.