Confirmed COVID-19 case numbers in Evanston have been rapidly declining with a 41% reduction from last week.

The city reported 281 new positive cases in the last seven days compared to last week’s 477.  This week’s positivity numbers constitute 59% of last week’s and 38% of what was observed in the week prior, which saw 740 positive cases.

Though case numbers have been significantly dropping, the seven-day moving average positivity rate is seeing a slower decline at 2.15% this week. The seven-day moving average saw a 0.75 percentage point reduction, compared to a 2.01 percentage point reduction from the week prior.

Cook County and Illinois overall saw steeper reductions than Evanston. In Cook County, the test positivity this week was 4.7%, down 3 percentage points from last week. Compared to last week’s 13.8% test positivity, the state is now at 8.2%.

Vaccination rates in the city, Cook County and the state have continued increasing. As of Thursday, 96.4% of Evanston residents ages 5 and older have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, a 0.5 percentage point increase from last week. In that age group, 86.2% of residents are fully vaccinated.

In Cook County, 77.3% of individuals ages 5 and older have received at least one dose — a 0.5 point increase from last week — and 69.3% are fully vaccinated. In the state, these percentages are 74.1% and 66.3%, respectively.

The Food and Drug Administration will meet on Feb. 15 to discuss making the first two doses of a three-dose Pfizer primary vaccination series available for children ages 6 months to four years.

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