Evanston reports 12.6% increase in new COVID-19 cases from previous week, “Medium” community risk level
Daily file photo by Angeli Mittal
Last week, Evanston’s COVID-19 community risk level reached the “High” transmission level following high caseloads. A Thursday release states the city is now at a “Medium” community risk level.
May 19, 2022
Evanston reported 447 new COVID-19 cases this week, a 12.6% increase from the previous week. The city’s community risk level went down to a “Medium” from last week’s “High” risk level.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the city can reach medium transmission by having high hospitalization rates or more than 200 total COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents at one time. While Evanston doesn’t report total COVID-19 cases, the city reported about 349 new cases per 100,000 residents this week, based on population numbers from the 2020 census.
Last week, Evanston’s COVID-19 community risk level reached the “High” transmission level. This prompted city staff to release updated mitigation recommendations, and Evanston Township High School to reinstate its indoor mask requirement for students and staff.
The city stopped reporting its positivity rate on April 28 due to changes in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services requirements.
Five new people were admitted to the hospital with COVID-19 in the past week. Thirty-six people are currently in Evanston hospitals with COVID-19.
The percentage of residents 5 and older who have received at least one vaccine dose declined slightly to 96.7% from 97.3% two weeks ago, while the percentage of fully-vaccinated residents rose 0.1 percentage points to 88.5%.
In Cook County, 77.1% of residents have gotten at least one dose compared to 78.8% two weeks ago, and 71.51% have been fully vaccinated compared to 72.4% two weeks ago.
Across the state, 81.6% of residents 5 and older have been at least partially vaccinated, a 0.1 percentage point increase from two weeks ago, and 73.5% have been fully vaccinated, a 0.4 percentage point increase from two weeks ago.
To date, Evanston has had more than 13,000 total confirmed cases. The city recommended in the release that residents wear a mask indoors to protect those most vulnerable, and that they get tested before attending family or public events.
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