Will County remains under Tier 3 mitigations

By: 
STAFF REPORT

Nine of the state’s 11 regions saw their resurgence mitigation requirements to battle the novel coronavirus rolled back at the beginning of this week.

But, Will County was not among those areas where guidelines were relaxed.

Will County and Kankakee County make up Region 7, one of only two regions in the state that remain in Tier 3 mitigations. Region 4, the St. Louis metro east area, also remains in Tier 3.

Regions 1, 2, and 6 are now in Tier 1 mitigations. This includes Grundy County which is part of Region 2.

Regions 8, 9, 10, and 11 are now in Tier 2 mitigations. This includes Chicago and suburban Cook County.

Regions 3 and 5, western and southern Illinois, are no longer under any resurgence mitigations.

In Tier 3 resurgence mitigations, bars and restaurants continue to be restricted from offering indoor service. Additional mitigations include capacity limits at grocery stores and pharmacies of 50%, funerals are limited to 10 guests, and all other meetings/gatherings, including weddings and private parties, are prohibited.

Additionally, health and fitness centers, personal care services, malls, and retail stores outside of grocery stores or pharmacies are limited to 25% capacity.

Masks and social distancing remain mandatory in all public spaces.

The changes mean that indoor service at bars and restaurants in Grundy County is permitted at 25% capacity, but is still not allowed in Will County.

Although indoor bar service is allowed under Tier 1, it remains suspended unless food is being served at the establishment.

According to the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH), in order for Region 7 to move to Tier 2, it must experience less than 12% test positivity rate (seven-day rolling average) for three consecutive days, and greater than or equal to 20% percent available intensive care unit (ICU) and medical/surgical bed availability (seven-day rolling average) for three consecutive days, and a decline in the number of COVID-19 patients in the hospital (seven-day rolling average) in seven out of the last 10 days.

Region 7 has met two of those three metrics.

The region’s test positivity rate is 7.5% as of Jan. 16. The region has remained under the 12% threshold for 31 consecutive days.

Hospital bed availability has been greater or equal to 20% for 19 consecutive days.

But the region has yet to meet the threshold for a decline in hospitalizations. While there have been patient decreases in the past month, there have only been decreases in four of the past 10 days, falling short of the metric to move to Tier 2.

As of Jan. 18, there are 146 people hospitalized for COVID-19 in Region 7.

According to IDPH, the positivity rate in Will County is 8.2% as of Jan. 16.

Prior to Monday, eight of the state’s 11 mitigation regions remained under Tier 3 restrictions.

“Hospital leaders have made clear the importance of staffing in their continued response to this pandemic and conveyed that staffing contracts will be extraordinarily valuable in their ability to meet the needs of their communities,” IDPH Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said in a news release.

The statewide seven-day rolling case positivity rate was 5.7% as of Tuesday, and has been steadily decreasing for more than a week. The rolling positivity rate was 7.6% at the beginning of last week.

On Tuesday, IDPH reported 4,318 new confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19, and 33 additional deaths.

In zip code 60481, which includes Wilmington, Shadow Lakes, Symerton, and surrounding areas, the total number of cases of COVID-19 recorded since the start of the pandemic is 1,049.

In the 60408 zip code, Braidwood, total cases are 476.

In total, the state has reported 1,076,532 COVID-19 cases, including 18,291 deaths across the state’s 102 counties since the pandemic began.

The entire state will move into Phase 1B of vaccine distribution starting Jan. 25, although some counties have already entered this phase.

Most of the state is only distributing the vaccine under Phase 1A, which includes health care workers and long-term care facility residents. Counties that have substantially completed the first phase have started Phase 1B, which includes non-health care essential workers, residents 65 years or older and inmates.

As of Monday night, a total of 1,085,950 vaccines were delivered to the state of Illinois. In Will County, 23,783 vaccines have been administered.